Associate Researcher in Molecular Haematology

Description of the workplace
Professor Ewa Sitnicka Quinn's research group is now looking for an associate researcher to expand the group with. The broad research interest of the group is to identify cellular and molecular pathways during development of cells of the immune system (in mouse and in human). The gained knowledge could lead to a better understanding of hematopoietic disorders such as immune-deficiencies, myeloproliferative disease and leukemia.

The focus of this associated researcher position is to study the development of human innate immune cells - NK cells and investigating mechanisms regulating the differentiation and function of these cells during normal hematopoietic development and during hematopoietic malignancies such as leukemia and immune-deficiencies. Please read more about our research here.

This position involves studies using primary human cells in the project supported by the grant from the Swedish Cancer Foundation: “Deciphering Human NK Cell Development and Function in Health and in Blood Malignancies to Improve NK Cell-Based Therapy Aganist Cancer”.

What we offer
Read more on the University’s website about being a Lund University employee, Work at Lund University

Work duties and areas of responsibility
This research position is focused on hematopoiesis, early stages of lymphoid development and regulatory pathways. The work will involve studies of human lymphopoiesis with focus on NK cell development.

The work duties and responsibilities will involve establishing an ex vivo model to study the development of human immune system cells and characterization of intermediate differentiation stages and their function. You will use this model to identify critical pathways driving and regulating NK cell development and to determine how NK cell development is altered by the disease. To address these questions in this ex vivo model, you will apply multilineage flow cytometry (FACS) to determine NK cell phenotype and will test cytotoxic function against tumor target cells, as well and by performing gene expression analysis (RNA-sequencing). You will investigate the critical NK cell regulatory pathways using specific gene knock-down. Finally, the pathways involved in the disease-induced immune defects that you will identify, you will use as targets for therapy to restore NK cell activity and function. In addition, you will test NK cell differentiation in newly established in vivo ossicle xeno-transplantation model.

Qualification requirements
Requirements are:

• PhD in immunology, hematology or cancer biology with focus on biological health
• Documented training in ex vivo human cell tissue culture
• Experience as well as extensive training (special courses) in advanced flow cytometry and cell sorting (FACS)
• Excellent knowledge of blood cell development, immunology, NK cell biology, cancer immunotherapy
• Expertise in advanced multiparameter flow cytometry (FACS) to identify and characterize different types of hematopoietic cells
• Experience in cells isolation by FACS sorting
• Experience in molecular biology techniques including gene editing and gene profiling analysis
• Expertise in sterile technique and ex vivo tissue culture including differentiation of hematopoietic progenitors to mature immune cells
• Experience in evaluation of functional activity of immune cells
• Knowledge of relevant computer programs and bioinformatics training (special courses), (including Flow Jo, UMAP algorithm, R and Python programming languages) to analyse experimental data and programs to document and display the data is expected
• Good knowledge of spoken and written English

Additional qualifications:

• The ability to develop and conduct high quality research
• Teaching skills

Emphasis will be held at personal skills and suitability. The assignments require that you have the ability to work independently, have a good ability to collaborate and excellent intrapersonal and communication skills. Applicants must be able to work both independently and in groups.

Further information
The employment is a full time (100%), permanent position. Start date is 2025-01-14, or according to agreement.

How to apply
You apply for the position via the University’s recruitment system. The application is to include a personal letter describing how you meet the qualification requirements and why you are interested in the position. The application is also to include a CV with a list of publications, a general description of previous research and any other documents to which you wish to draw attention (copies of degree certificates, grade transcripts, details of referees, letters of recommendation, etc.)