PhD Researcher - Micro-Multiphysics — ETH Zürich

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PhD Researcher - Micro-Multiphysics 100%, Singapore, fixed-term Drucken The Singapore-ETH Centre was established in 2010 by ETH Zurich - The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and Singapore’s National Research Foundation (NRF), as part of the NRF’s CREATE campus. As ETH Zurich's only research centre outside of Switzerland, the centre has strengthened the research capacity of ETH Zurich to develop sustainable solutions to global challenges in Switzerland, Singapore and the surrounding regions. Set in Asia, in a rapidly urbanising region, the Singapore-ETH Centre aims to provide practical solutions to some of the most pressing challenges on urban sustainability, resilience and health through its programmes: Future Cities Lab Global (FCL Global) and Future Health Technologies (FHT) . The centre serves as an intellectual hub for research, bringing together principal investigators and researchers from diverse disciplines and backgrounds. To promote the exchange of ideas and expertise, our researchers actively collaborate with universities and research institutes and engage with industry and government agencies to translate knowledge to practical solutions to real-world problems. Project background Micro-Multiphysics Agent-Based Modelling for Simulation of Patient-Specific Bone Remodelling Fragility fractures are among the most serious consequences of impaired skeletal health in older adults and often lead to reduced mobility, loss of independence, and long-term disability. Although current standards of care provide important tools for assessing skeletal health and fracture risk, they do not fully capture how individual differences in bone remodelling, inflammation, mechanical loading, and biological tissue response influence fracture progression over time. Osteoporosis and related age-associated bone disorders are highly heterogeneous, with patients differing in bone formation capacity, osteoclast activity, inflammatory status, mineralisation dynamics, and capacity for mechanoadaptation. Computational models that integrate these biological and clinical differences could support more personalised strategies for fracture prevention and musculoskeletal care. Building on the dynamic bone organoid culture platform developed in the Laboratory for Bone Biomechanics at ETH Zurich, this project aims to develop micro-multiphysics agent-based models (micro-MPA) that link patient-derived organoid readouts with clinical and imaging data. The doctoral researcher will develop computational workflows to simulate bone remodelling processes, mechanical-cytokine microenvironments, cellular dynamics, and patient-specific fracture risk trajectories. Biological outputs from patient-derived 3D bone organoids, including mineralisation dynamics, osteoclast activity, immune-bone interactions, inflammatory profiles, and mechanical response, will be translated into model parameters and integrated with relevant clinical datasets. The resulting modelling framework will support the prediction of patient-specific bone remodelling trajectories and fracture risk under different biological and mechanical conditions, contributing to data-driven and human-relevant approaches for precision fracture prevention. Job description The PhD candidate will interact closely with engineers, clinicians, biologists, computational researchers, to generate a micro-MPA modelling framework supporting prediction of patient-specific bone remodelling trajectories and fracture risk. Some key components in the work are:

• Development of micro-MPA modelling workflows for patient-specific bone remodelling and fracture risk prediction.
• Integration of biological readouts from patient-derived 3D bone organoids with clinical, imaging, and computational datasets.
• Simulation of bone remodelling processes, mechanical-cytokine microenvironments, cellular dynamics, and fracture risk trajectories.
• Development and validation of predictive modelling frameworks to su