As Austria's largest research and technology organisation for applied research, we are dedicated to make substantial contributions to solving the major challenges of our time, climate change and digitalisation. To achieve our goals, we rely on our specific research, development and technology competencies, which are the basis of our commitment to excellence in all areas. With our open culture of innovation and our motivated, international teams, we are working to position AIT as Austria's leading research institution at the highest international level and to make a positive contribution to the economy and society.

Our Center for Health & Bioresources is looking for new Ingenious Partner for our location in Vienna. In the Center for Health & Bioresources, we aim to solve challenges associated with demographic change, resource scarcity and environmental pollution and to develop innovative solutions, that enable early disease detection and support healthy and active aging.

Our Competence Unit Molecular Diagnostics focuses its research on the development of novel diagnostic technologies for a wide range of applications (e.g., infectious diseases, cancer diagnostics, health monitoring).

The PhD project is part of the European research project REACTION involving 14 institutions from Europe and is coordinated by Dr. Ivan Barišić. The goal of the Horizon Europe project is to develop novel in silico and in vitro technologies for food defence. The PhD candidate will develop novel, aptamer-based technologies to improve the detection of food-associated health threats.

• You dive deeper into the topic of synthetic biology and DNA-based diagnostics.
• You carry out a literature search and keep track of the actual literature about aptamers and alternative biorecognition molecules.
• You perform sequencing experiments to analyse clinical and food samples.
• You use and become familiar with analytical instruments and molecular tools.
• By interacting with other international scientists and project consortia working on food defence, diagnostics, and synthetic biology you will also be building up your professional network.
• You will be introduced to the European community working on food safety, food security and food defence.

• You will gain experience in an international, interdisciplinary research group, while workingwith molecular biologists, chemists, computer scientists, physicists, and dissemination and exploitation experts.
• You will publish your research results in international journals and will present them at conferences.
• You will learn how to evaluate the results and prepare them for further studie
• You will accumulate experience in a research field, that has an enormous potential to transform the food industry.