Postdoctoral studes in human adipose tissue biology (scholarship) - Hiring in process/Finished, not possible to apply

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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 utilized more effectively.

The main interests of the Spalding research group are to investigate properties of human adipose tissue, with particular attention to human adipocyte biology. We investigate basic cellular functions, such as senescence, adipocyte lipid and cell turnover, adipocyte response to obesity and hyperinsulinemia and cellular heterogeneity in human adipose tissue depots. Understanding the cell biology and heterogeneity of adipocytes in human adipose tissue, with the ultimate aim of understanding their contributions to health and pathology, is a major focus of the group.

The Spalding group has established strong clinical collaborations within Sweden and abroad, ensuring high quality access to human adipose tissue. All necessary platforms, such as FACS, single cell Sequencing, confocal microscopy etc. are available.

The postdoctoral position and duties of the postdoctoral fellow

Many metabolic diseases, including type 2 diabetes, strongly associate with obesity, making obesity one of the major health challenges facing the world today. Understanding how adipocytes respond to obesity and contribute to pathological processes is more relevant than ever, especially with juvenile and adult levels of obesity reaching epidemic proportions world-wide.

The Spalding lab has recently identified that human fat cells can activate a cell cycle program and senesce. Senescent fat cells, which release factors that cause inflammation and dysfunction, increase in adipose tissue and associate with pathology. The proposed projects will investigate (i) the drivers of adipocyte senescence and (ii) the senescent cell secretory phenotype and (iii) how this impacts on metabolic disease and cancer.

The successful applicant will perform studies in human adipose tissue samples to perform adipocyte cell culture,  immuno-histo/cytochemistry, flow cytometry, confocal microscopy and other molecular biology techniques (including protein and RNA studies). Experience with gene editing (CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing), next generation sequencing and bioinformatics is considered an advantage.

Entry requirements

Scholarships for postdoctoral qualification can be established for foreign researchers who place their qualifications in Sweden. The purpose of scholarships for postdoctoral qualification is to promote internationalization and contribute to research qualification after a doctorate or equivalent.

A scholarship for carrying out postdoctoral research can be granted for a maximum of two years within a four year period following the receipt of a doctoral degree or equivalent.
To be eligible for a postdoctoral scholarship, the person must have obtained a doctorate or a foreign degree deemed to be equivalent to a doctorate. Applicants who have not completed a doctorate at the end of the application period may also apply, provided that all requirements for a completed degree are met before the (intended) start date of the post doctoral education.

The head of the department determines whether their previous training and scholarly qualifications correspond to a Swedish doctorate or higher.

Skills and personal qualities

We seek an individual with a background in molecular biology, biomedicine or the equivalent. The candidate should have a good team spirit, be self-motivated and a keen interest in human adipose biology. 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).

Location: Stockholm, Solna

Type of scholarship

The amount is tax free and it is set for twelve months at a time, paid out on a six months basis. In exceptional cases, shorter periods may be acceptable.

Application process

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

• A complete curriculum vitae, 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 on the Varbi recruitment system.

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