Eawag, the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, is an internationally networked aquatic research institute within the ETH Domain. Eawag conducts research, education and expert consulting to achieve the dual goals of meeting direct human needs for water and maintaining the function and integrity of aquatic ecosystems.
Synthetic oligonucleotides are a rapidly evolving class of nucleic acid-based therapeutics with increasing market approval rates and the potential to revolutionize precision medicine. Their chemical modifications protect them from enzymatic hydrolysis in the human body, ensuring clinical effectiveness, but may also affect their behavior and biological activity after excretion in wastewater treatment plants and aquatic environments. Despite anticipated emissions and potential environmental persistence, there is no observational data on the occurrence, fate, and possible (eco)toxic effects of synthetic oligonucleotides. Such data is critical for decisions about appropriate environmental risk assessments of this substance class.
With an interdisciplinary consortium of environmental chemists and molecular biologists from Eawag and ETH Zürich, this 2-year study aims to pioneer the exposure assessment of synthetic oligonucleotides in aquatic environments at an early stage of their therapeutic deployment, laying the analytical foundation to monitor and report occurrences and persistence in the environment.
Your tasks
- Develop mass spectrometry-based analytical procedures for mONs.
- Deploy the established method(s) for determining the occurrence of mONs in environmental samples from potential emission hotspots in Switzerland.
- Evaluate mON transformation in laboratory (waste)water model systems.
What you bring
- PhD in environmental/analytical chemistry, biochemistry, molecular biology or a related discipline.
- Experience in liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (HRMS), sample preparation procedures, and corresponding data evaluation pipelines.
- Prior experience in HRMS of biomolecules would be advantageous.
- Proficiency in English is required.
- Motivation for fundamental research in an environmental context.
- Teamwork, communication, and collaborative skills.
- Interest in advising students.
- Willingness to engage with regulators and stakeholders.
What the company offers
We promote genuine participation, exchange, and mutual understanding. Structures are created to enable compatibility of work and other areas of life, such as care work, and efforts are made to reduce barriers. Flexible working hours and job design solutions are possible.
About the company
Eawag is the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, part of the ETH Domain, conducting research, education, and expert consulting to support human water needs and aquatic ecosystem integrity.
The team
The position is part of an interdisciplinary consortium of environmental chemists and molecular biologists from Eawag and ETH Zürich.