Theoretical Biophysicist – Cellular and Tissue Architecture

Job description

About ARTIDIS ARTIDIS AG is a clinical-stage health-tech start-up founded in Basel, Switzerland, that has developed the first nanomechanical biomarker for cancer diagnosis and treatment optimization. The ARTIDIS nanotechnology platform integrates different types of clinical data into the ARTIDISNET digital platform, allowing physicians to significantly shorten the current diagnostic process and benefit both the patient and the healthcare system. ARTIDIS enables professionals to design personalized cancer treatment plans tailored to individual patients' needs and desired outcomes. Job Purpose The Theoretical Biophysicist – Cellular and Tissue Architecture role is responsible for strengthening the biological and medical interpretation of signals generated by ARTIDIS automated atomic force microscopes (AFM). This function ensures that hypotheses, experiments, and models reflect the cellular composition, extracellular environment, and structural organization of biological tissues. In this role, you will help interpret how different tissue and cellular components may contribute to mechanical and spatial measurement patterns. You will bring detailed knowledge of cells, tissues, extracellular matrix, and tissue organization into the design of experiments and the interpretation of experimental results. A key objective of the role is to identify biologically meaningful structures that should be investigated experimentally and represented in computational models. You will work with imaging and experimental data to define relevant tissue geometries, structural features, and material regions. Where appropriate, you will translate these observations into simplified geometries or computational meshes, supported by colleagues with expertise in numerical methods and scientific computing. The primary focus of the role is biological and medical understanding, combined with the ability to formulate quantitative hypotheses and communicate tissue structure in a form that can be used experimentally and computationally. You will collaborate closely with experimental scientists, computational physicists, data scientists, and the Signal Processing team to strengthen the biological interpretability of measurements generated by ARTIDIS automated AFM devices. Duties and Responsibilities Provide biological and medical expertise on the cellular composition and structural organization of tissues. Identify cellular, extracellular, and tissue-level structures that may influence mechanical measurement signals. Develop biologically grounded hypotheses concerning the origin of spatial and force-curve patterns. Propose targeted experiments to investigate specific cells, tissue components, interfaces, and structural arrangements. Support the selection and design of relevant biological model systems. Interpret microscopy, histology, and other spatially resolved biological data. Annotate or segment relevant tissue structures in imaging data. Define biologically meaningful regions, interfaces, geometries, and structural features for computational modeling. Translate complex tissue architecture into simplified representations suitable for numerical simulation. Contribute to the generation of two-dimensional and three-dimensional geometries or computational meshes. Collaborate with computational colleagues to determine appropriate assumptions, boundary conditions, material regions, and model parameters. Compare biological observations with experimental measurements and simulation results. Assess whether computational representations remain biologically meaningful and consistent with available evidence. Support validation of physical and analytical models against experimental and histological observations. Review scientific and medical literature on tissue composition, cell morphology, extracellular matrix, and disease-related tissue changes. Document biological assumptions, structural interpretations, annotations, and experimental hypotheses. Present findings and collaborate with the Signal Processing team and other scientific functions. Support the interpretation of measurement variability across different samples, tissue types, and biological conditions. Qualifications Master’s degree, PhD, medical degree, or equivalent research experience in biophysics, cell biology, tissue biology, mechanobiology, biomedical engineering, pathology, physiology, medical sciences, or a closely related field. Strong understanding of cell and tissue composition, including cellular structures, extracellular matrix, interfaces, and tissue organization. Experience working with biological tissues, cells, organoids, tissue sections, or other physiologically relevant model systems. Ability to connect biological structure and function with measurable physical or mechanical properties. Experience formulating and testing scientific hypotheses. Ability to interpret microscopy, histology, or other spatially resolved biological data. Ability to simplify complex biological structures into clear conceptual or geometric representations. Quantitative mindset and interest in working with physicists, engineers, and data scientists. Ability to read scientific and medical literature and translate findings into experimental or modeling questions. Strong written and spoken English. German knowledge is a plus. Strong communication skills and the ability to work effectively in an interdisciplinary environment. Nice to have The following experience is beneficial but not essential: Knowledge of tissue mechanics, cell mechanics, mechanobiology, or extracellular-matrix biology. Experience with human tissue, patient-derived samples, histopathology, or disease-related changes in tissue architecture. Experience with connective, epithelial, stromal, or tumor tissue. Familiarity with fluorescence microscopy, confocal microscopy, histology, immunohistochemistry, or related imaging methods. Experience with image segmentation, annotation, or quantitative image analysis. Familiarity with tools such as ImageJ, QuPath, napari, CellProfiler, or comparable imaging software. Basic experience creating two-dimensional or three-dimensional geometries from imaging data. Exposure to mesh-generation, CAD, finite-element, or simulation workflows. Basic programming or data-analysis experience in Python, MATLAB, R, or a comparable environment. Exposure to AFM, force spectroscopy, indentation measurements, or mechanical characterization of biological materials. Experience collaborating with computational scientists or translating biological questions into mathematical models. Working Conditions The environment is a typical start-up with an intrinsically motivated international team. Our company is an excellent place for rapid advancement and offers a promising opportunity to learn and share know-how in a very agile environment. The position requires the employee to go the extra mile when needed. We are looking for a team player who appreciates direct communication. The effort is rewarded with challenging tasks, the possibility to take responsibility, a highly driven team, and work serving a significant purpose. The job position comes with a competitive salary and a bonus for outstanding performance.