Project description: we have an internship position available for a UU GSLS MSc student for their MSc research internship (6 to 9 months) for a project within the Ombion project. The effectiveness of drug delivery systems depends critically on their ability to provide controlled and sustained drug release under physiological conditions. In particular, long-acting injectable therapies hold great promise for advancing regenerative medicine by enabling prolonged therapeutic effects while reducing the need for repeated administration.
In this project, you will develop and characterize an innovative in vitro model to study subcutaneous drug release from long-acting injectable therapies. You will work with decellularized interstitial tissue of bovine and rat origin to develop a biomaterial-based, high-throughput platform that closely mimics the subcutaneous environment. This model will provide a versatile and efficient system for investigating drug release profiles and evaluating the performance of long-acting injectable formulations, with potential applications in the development of next-generation regenerative medicine therapies.
You will use the following techniques:
- Harvest tissues from bovine and rat cadavers
- Decellularization
- Hydrogel handling
- Biochemical assays to measure collagen, glycosaminoglycan, and possibly elastin
- Histology
Supervisor: dr. Lizette Utomo
Preferred starting date: to be discussed, preferably mid/end November 2026, or January 2027
Duration: 6 to 9 months
Eligibility: students enrolled at the GSLS at Utrecht University. Especially suitable for students enrolled in the programs: Regenerative Medicine and Technology (RMT), Biofabrication, Drug innovation, or Bio Inspired Innovation (BII). Students from other universities or research institutes who can compensate their bench fees are welcome to apply. All students and their program coordinators must sign an internship contract (UU template) prior to start of the internship.ust sign an internship contract (UU template) prior to start of the internship.
Interested? Fill in the form below: