Postdoctoral Fellow

A position for a Postdoctoral Fellow is open in the laboratory of Claire M. Doerschuk, MD, Marsico Lung Institute and the Division of Pulmonary Diseases and Critical Care at the University of North Carolina (UNC-Chapel Hill).  The project involves study of inflammatory and innate immune mechanisms in response to pulmonary infections using both in vitro and in vivo systems, including mouse models of infection. The purpose of this position is to investigate the kinetics and function of neutrophils and macrophage subpopulations in developing and resolving pneumonia. 

The particular focus of this work is the functional heterogeneity of neutrophils responding to pneumonia and the contribution of the heterogeneity in the lung microenvironment.  The hypothesis is that during an immune response, neutrophils undergo changes in their transcriptomes that regulate their function and that the unique structure of the lungs creates microenvironments within the parenchyma and alveoli/small airways that regulate the phenotype of neutrophils. 

The studies utilize molecular and cell biological technologies and in vivo experimentation, including single cell RNAseq/CITEseq, bulk RNA profiling, and spatial transcriptomics and proteomics.  Other technologies include qPCR, cell culture, flow cytometry, mass cytometry, cell sorting, ELISAs, immunoblotting, murine experimentation, and histology, as well as translational science technologies and bioinformatics. Career development is also an important component of this position. 

Qualifications

  • Education: A PhD degree in Immunology, Pathology, Genetics, Cell and Molecular Physiology or similar discipline required and/or MD degree or equivalent.
  • Other: Experience in Immunology, Pathology, Genetics, Cell and Molecular Physiology or similar discipline is required.  Also strongly recommended are 1) course work or knowledge in immunology (particularly inflammation and innate immunity), cell and molecular physiology, and/or pathology of disease, 2) experience and proficiency in some of the technologies described above, and 3) experience in mouse models of lung disease. Experience in analysis of scRNAseq and spatial data is helpful. 

To apply:  Contact Claire M. Doerschuk, MD at [email protected].