Postdoctoral Researcher in in obesity and cancer

Do you want to contribute to top quality medical research?

The research group

The Department of Cell and Molecular Biology (CMB) is a department with a strong focus on basic science. CMB conducts research and education in cell biology, molecular biology, developmental biology, stem cell biology, cancer and infection biology. CMB is located in Biomedicum, a new interdisciplinary research center designed to concentrate much of the experimental research conducted at Karolinska Institutet Campus Solna under one roof to promote collaboration. Biomedicum houses approximately 1,200 researchers and other personnel and allows expensive equipment to be shared and utilised more effectively.

The Spalding group investigates multiple aspects of human adipose biology, with a particular interest in the normal and pathological functioning of adipocytes in response to overnutrition. With obesity associated diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and cancer increasing at epidemic proportions, the Spalding lab recognises the strong need to better understand obesity-related disease pathogenesis and develop novel treatment strategies which take into account the obesity component of the disease.

Your mission

Obesity is a risk factor for cancer and predicts poor clinical outcomes. An important, negative predictor of cancer survival is metastasis. The mechanisms underlying the metastatic spread of cancer, including the orchestrated programs coordinating cell migration and dissemination, remain unclear. The epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a critical tumour cell plasticity and dedifferentiation program, by which epithelial cells acquire pro-migratory and invasive mesenchymal properties. Obesity-induced changes in adipocytes within the tumour microenvironment have been shown to influence the behaviour of adjacent cancer cells, promoting the infiltration of immune cells and the secretion of cytokines, resulting in localized inflammation. Tumour-resident adipocytes and stromal cells have also been shown to promote the growth, migration and invasion of breast cancer cells in the cancer mileu, with fatty acids derived from cancer-associated adipocytes acting as an energy source for tumour cells. Little is known, however, about the contribution of adipose tissue distal to the tumour site. With approximately 90% of the body’s fat being subcutaneous and metastasis a systemic disease, the contribution of this fat depot, in lean and obese states, is of prime importance. The advertised postdoctoral position will investigate the contribution of white adipose tissue fat cells to cancer progression, with particular focus on how adipocytes promote metastasis in human cancers.

The successful applicant will work with human adipose tissue biopsies, cancer cell lines and patient-derived cancer cells. Analyses and methods include cell culture,  immunocytochemistry, confocal microscopy, invasion assay and other molecular biology techniques (including protein and RNA analyses). The postdoctoral fellow will bring hands on cancer expertise to the group, complementing the adipose tissue expertise of the Spalding group and metastasis expertise of our cancer collaborators (Theresa Vincent, KI and NYU). The main aims of the project will be to investigate the contribution of adipocytes from individuals with obesity to promoting the metastatic spread of cancer.  

Your profile

To be eligible for employment as a postdoctor a doctoral degree or a foreign degree deemed to be equivalent to a Swedish doctoral degree is required. This eligibility requirement must be fulfilled at the latest at the time of the employment decision. It is considered as an advantage if you have completed your doctoral degree within the last three years, if there are special reasons, your degree may have been completed earlier.

We seek an individual with a background in cancer biology and metastasis (epithelial to mesenchymal transition). Expertise in the culture of cancer cell lines and patient derived cancer cells, immunocytochemistry and confocal microscopy, migration and invasion assays and molecular biology techniques (RNAseq, qPCR, western blot, ELISA, mass spectrometry) are strongly preferred.

The candidate should have a good team spirit, be self motivated and a keen interest in the factors driving cancer metastasis. Experience in working with molecular biology techniques, confocal microscopy, tissue culture, gene editing, epigenetics or computational biology are a strong plus. A solid background in statistics or programming is also an advantage. The postdoctoral applicant is required to have good communication skills in English (written and verbal).

What do we offer?

A creative and inspiring environment with wide-ranging expertise and interests. Karolinska Institutet is one of the world's leading medical universities. At Karolinska Institutet, we conduct successful medical research and hold the largest range of medical education in Sweden. At KI, you get to meet researchers working with a wide range of specialisms and methods, giving you ample opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience with the various scientific fields within medicine and health. It is the crossover collaborations, which have pushed KI to where it is today, at the forefront of global research. Several of the people you meet in healthcare are educated at KI. A close relationship with the health care providers is important for creating groundbreaking top quality education and research. Karolinska Institutet is also a state university, which entitles you to several benefits through our collective agreement.

Location: Solna

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Application

An employment application must contain the following documents in English or Swedish:

• A complete resumé, including date of the thesis defence, title of the thesis, previous academic positions, academic title, current position, academic distinctions, and committee work
• A complete list of publications
• A summary of current work (no more than one page)

The application is to be submitted through the Varbi recruitment system.

Welcome to apply!

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