Postdoctoral studies in immune signatures to surgical trauma(scholarship)

Do you want to contribute to top quality medical research? 

We are looking for an ambitious computational biologist with solid genome-wide bioinformatics/computational biology skills to join our highly accomplished team of immunologists and anesthesiologists as a postdoctoral fellow. The successful candidate will contribute to groundbreaking research on trauma-induced immune responses and their links to postoperative outcomes, including neuroinflammation, neurodegeneration, and neurocognitive decline.

Division

The Björkström group, hosting this position, consists of 3 PhD students and 4 postdocs and has a strong track-record working on human NK cells in tissues (Sci Immunol 2021, 2020, Sci Trans Med 2021 x2). The group works closely together with clinical partners at several Swedish hospitals and laboratory facilities at Science for Life Laboratories (SciLifeLab), Karolinska Institutet and abroad. The Eriksson group consists of two senior basic science researchers, one postdoc, a lab manager and two clinicans-scientists working on an internationally wellestablished translational program focusing on the human neuroimmune response to surgery and trauma. You will join a collaborative team of basic and clinical scientists addressing molecular and cellular immune responses to surgical trauma and their impact on long-term outcomes. 

Duties

The project involves analyzing high-dimensional data from multiome single-cell RNA sequencing (10x genomics), ATAC-sequencing, and other advanced technologies, such as multicolor flow-cytometry and PEA assays.

The multidimensional datasets for this project have already been generated, allowing immediate focus on analysis. The overarching aim of the project is to characterize the immune response signature to surgical trauma through integration of the analyzed datasets and to develop a precision-based strategy to identify at-risk patients. This will be done in collaboration with a multidisciplinary team including immunologists and anesthesiologists actively working on the project.

More broadly, the computational biologist postdoctoral fellow will be a part of the Center for Infectious Medicine (CIM), Karolinska Institutet, which is a nationally leading and internationally competitive center for human translational immunology and infectious diseases research. The center consists of approximately 25 graduate students and 20 postdocs organized around 17 independent research groups.

Entry requirements

Postdoctoral scholarships may be established for foreign researchers who pursue their postdoctoral research 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.

Your profile

• The candidate must hold a PhD in the field of bioinformatics/computational biology, or a related field.
• The candidate should fully master (requirement) R and Python (be proficient in Python Data Stack tools such as NymPY, SciPY, Pandas, scikit) and have solid Unix/Linux experience and statistical knowledge.
• Experience working in version-controlled systems in a merit. Experience with high-performance computing for analysis is another merit.
• The candidate should have experience in genome-wide NGS data, and in particular working with scRNA-seq and ATAC-seq data from FASTQ to analyzed data.
• Ability to use the analyzed data to generate integrated novel signatures to stratify patient cohorts is another merit as is previous experience working on immunology-related projects.
• The candidate should be self-motivated, have good communications skills and a proven ability to interact effectively and work productively in an interdiciplinary team.
• Fluency in written and spoken English is a requirement.

We put great emphasis on personal suitability.

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. Here, we conduct innovative medical research and provide the largest range of biomedical 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. Students and employees have free access to our modern gym facilities with trained staff on site.

Location: Flemingsberg, Stockholm

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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