32 Postdoctoral Fellowship at Wayne State University, Michigan, United States

A postdoctoral fellow position is available in the laboratory of Dr. Hanaa Hariri to study molecular and cellular mechanisms of fatty acid metabolism. Fatty acids are essential molecules for a broad range of cellular processes including lipid signaling, biological membranes, and energy metabolism; however, they are toxic to cells when present in excess. Dysregulation of fatty acid metabolism is a hallmark of devastating chronic human pathologies including obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. The Hariri lab is focused on understanding the molecular mechanisms that spatially regulate fatty acid flux at organelle contact sites.

The laboratory’s focus is to identify the root causes underlying suboptimal insulin infusion pump sets’ performance. In addition, investigations will be conducted into their associated skin pathologies including device insertion site injury, device material composition, drug delivery preservatives and adhesives. As the focus is on a drug delivery system, the candidate must have excellent training and recent research experience in protein analysis and molecular/cellular biology or a closely related discipline.

The research focus spans several disciplines from commercial insulin evaluation, biomaterial characterization to pathology and immunology, there are also opportunities to develop independent projects aligning with the broad goals of the Klueh laboratory, a multi-disciplinary team who also frequently collaborate with industry and clinical partners. Candidates will have the opportunity to be involved in pre-clinical porcine studies to evaluate insulin infusion site failures or other diabetes management devices, (e.g. continuous glucose monitors), if desired. Recent graduates and postdoctoral fellows in the Klueh laboratory have successfully acquired desirable positions in industry and academia.

The candidate will also be expected to advance existing projects as well as develop and lead new projects. Support for career development will be available for motivated individuals. The Bone & Joint Center is a multidisciplinary research team with expertise in a range of orthopaedic disciplines including cell/molecular biology, genomics, biomechanics, and imaging. Scientists in the Bone & Joint Center have a strong history of collaboration with the Departments of Orthopedic Surgery, Rheumatology, Radiology, Public Health Science, and Endocrinology at Henry Ford Health System.

The Bone & Joint Center is located within new laboratory space in Wayne State University’s state-of-the-art Integrative Biosciences Center. Additional information can be found on the Bone & Joint Center website. The initial appointment will be for 12 months, with additional 12-month extensions available based on performance. Anticipated start is September 2021, but it is negotiable. Review of applicants will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled.

The main focus of the Aras lab is to characterize the mitochondrian—nuclear cross talk and their contributions to breast cancer cell growth and metastasis. Techniques in molecular biology and biochemistry, including cell culture as well animal models, are used to address research goals.

A postdoctoral research fellow position is available in Dr. Yaoxian Huang’s lab in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering within the College of Engineering at Wayne State University. The prospective postdoctoral fellow will be responsible for conducting a research project to quantify the impacts of global/regional air pollution on atmospheric chemistry, air quality, human health and climate change, using state-of-the-science chemical transport models, epidemiological models and biostatistics. The postdoctoral fellow will have the opportunities to collaborate with scientists from Institute of Environmental Health Sciences at Wayne State University, Henry Ford Health System, and the National Center for Atmospheric Research. 

The laboratory of Xiying Guan is recruiting a postdoctoral fellow to work on bone-conduction hearing mechanisms. During bone-conduction stimulation, the skull vibration simultaneously stimulates the middle and the inner ear, challenging our ability to understand the underlying mechanisms. We investigate how sound pressures are generated in the cochlea and how the cochlear traveling waves are formed in bone-conduction. We perform intracochlear measurements of sound pressures and vibrations in human cadaveric ears. We develop circuit network models and finite element models to assist data analysis.

A postdoctoral position is available immediately in the laboratories of Drs. Melissa Runge-Morris and Thomas Kocarek at the Institute of Environmental Health Sciences/Center for Urban Responses to Environmental Stressors, Integrative Biosciences Center (IBio), Wayne State University, to work on an NIH grant-supported project to study the mechanisms controlling developmental expression of liver gene expression, with particular focus on cytosolic sulfotransferase family of drug- and endogenous molecule-metabolizing enzymes, in experimental models of human hepatocyte differentiation.

Postdoctoral research associate positions are available immediately to work on three NIH-funded projects on the role of preconception environmental exposures on sperm epigenetics and early-life development that span human cohort studies and animal models at Wayne State University in Detroit, MI.

Projects comprise of multiple population-based studies including the Sperm Environmental Epigenetics and Development Study (SEEDS), which has been enrolling couples seeking in vitro fertilization (IVF) to understand the associations between preconception paternal exposures to endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs), such as phthalates, sperm epigenetics, and embryo development. In parallel to our human studies, we are examining embryonic inheritance of sperm epigenetics after preconception environmental exposures in male mice. Lastly, we are investigating the role of the environment on sncRNA expression of extracellular vesicles from human seminal plasma. Together, these projects utilize a variety of locus-specific and next-generation techniques such as RNA-seq, RRBS, and WGBS, as well as EPIC arrays in human and mouse sperm and mouse embryos. Opportunities for postdoc-driven independent research are also possible.

By exploiting recently discovered analogies between acoustics, nonlinear waves, and quantum mechanics, this research will create the foundations for a path to promising and validating modes of storing, processing, and retrieving information in acoustic waves that complement conventional quantum technologies. For more information about the research/project, please see:

• New Frontiers of Sound (NewFoS)
• Science and Technology Center
• Connections in Quantum Information Science: A Sound Leap

Two postdoctoral fellow positions are immediately available in the laboratory of Dr. Shengyi (Iris) Sun, an assistant professor at the Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics at the Wayne State University School of Medicine. The main focus of the Sun lab is to delineate the physiological significance and underlying molecular mechanism of endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-associated protein degradation (ERAD) machinery in health and disease, with a special focus on the regulation of liver homeostasis. The lab uses interdisciplinary state-of-the-art approaches, powered by cell type-specific mouse models and CRISPR technology, to address the important questions.

This is an excellent opportunity to work on innovative and impactful research projects in a highly collaborative environment. We are committed to the career development of our team. Individuals who join our group will be encouraged to develop new skills, receive intensive mentoring, and encouraged to submit fellowship applications.

We study cell division mechanisms using C. elegans as a model organism. Our main R01 funded project seeks to characterize novel functions of separase during cytokinesis. We use multiple advanced live cell imaging techniques, including lattice light sheet and an in house spinning disk. We also use genetics, CRISPR, and biochemistry to explore how mechanisms of cell division operate in a developmental context. We recently moved to the C.S. Mott Center at Wayne State University and are affiliated with an oocyte biology research group. This group has expertise and interest in mammalian systems including human, which will be a great opportunity for potential future collaborations to translate our research into mammalian systems. Come join our team!

The project is an intervention study investigating the impact of therapeutic mild intermittent hypoxia on autonomic and motor dysfunction in participants with a spinal cord injury and sleep apnea.

A postdoctoral position is open at the Roberts Lab at Karmanos Cancer Institute and Wayne State University. This individual will work as part of a team of a chemist, biologist, and imagers seeking to harness the power of nuclear medicine for therapy and track its therapeutic responses using optoacoustics. The lab focuses on novel imaging techniques and new sensor technologies. More information on the Roberts lab can be found on their website. We seek to recruit a postdoctoral scholar that will develop imaging strategies, microscopy work in vitro and in vivo animal work. The Roberts Lab is new and seeks to cultivate an interactive, pro-active and supportive environment. Ideal candidates will be self-driven, curious, organized, responsible and collegial.

A postdoctoral position is open at the Roberts Lab at Karmanos Cancer Institute and Wayne State University. This individual will work as part of a team of a chemist, biologist, and imagers seeking to harness the power of nuclear medicine for therapy and track its therapeutic responses using optoacoustics. The lab focuses on novel imaging techniques and new sensor technologies. More information on the Roberts lab can be found on their website. 

(18) Postdoctoral Fellowship Position

Postdoc Fellowship Position summary/title: Molecular mechanisms of diabetic retinopathy

Deadline : Open Until Filled

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A postdoctoral fellowship position is immediately available to study the role of interleukins and caspase signaling in vascular wall remodeling and pathological angiogenesis. Experience in two or more of the following areas is preferred: Cloning, protein-protein interactions, confocal microscopy/live-cell imaging, atherosclerosis, and pathological retinal angiogenesis.vCandidate with publications as first authors in peer-reviewed journals is preferred.

The fellow will be involved in studies, which are aimed at understanding G protein-mediated signaling mechanisms underlying islet beta-cell function in health and diabetes. Specifically, these investigations will assess roles of G proteins and their regulatory factors in physiological insulin secretion, and potential abnormalities in these signaling modules in beta-cell models of impaired insulin secretion and diabetes.

The Lipchik Group investigates how the immune system senses and coordinates its response to inflammation. A stint in the lab, located in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences in the Eugene Applebaum College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, provides training for careers in academia (graduate school, medical school) or builds entrepreneurial and technical skills for biotech and pharma.

The use of immunoglobulin as an anti-inflammatory therapy was first discovered in 1981 when thrombocytopenia was treated with high-dose intravenous IgG (IVIG). Since then, IVIG has been shown to be therapeutically efficacious in over 100 different diseases. IVIG has many ideal therapeutic properties but suffers from several limitations, including the dependency on a human source and a prohibitively high dose (1-2 g/kg) requirement. Despite the known benefits of IVIG therapy, there have been limited advancements in the design, manufacturing, or formulation of IgG as an anti-inflammatory therapy. The lab will address this need by devising multiple innovative strategies to engineer recombinant immunoglobulins with enhanced therapeutic properties to reduce the required dosage and circumvent the need for a human source. These strategies include mutations for specific Fc receptor binding, self-assembled multimers of IgG for higher avidity, and the introduction of novel mutations for co-receptor engagement and activation with other biomolecules. The efficiency of these new formulations will be applied to classic models of inflammation and autoimmunity. This approach offers an innovative, scalable therapy to treat the 100 conditions where IVIG is effective.

A postdoctoral position is available in the laboratory of Guangde Jiang, Ph.D., focusing on drug discovery through biocatalysis. The primary research objective is to explore enzymes from diverse origins to discover novel biocatalysts for synthesizing pharmaceutically relevant compounds and to create structural diversity of small molecules for drug discovery.

The primary research focus is the role of cell adhesion and neuronal self-avoidance in the developing mouse retina, focusing on two families of cell adhesion molecules: the clustered protocadherins and DSCAMs. The lab uses a variety of techniques including mouse genetics and genomics, electroporation and viral gene delivery, primary neuronal culture, and microscopy.

The Park Lab is seeking highly motivated postdocs to study synaptic molecular dynamics that underlie memory formation in health and its impairments in Alzheimer’s disease. Candidates with expertise/interest in biochemistry, live-cell imaging, virus-mediated gene delivery, immunohistochemistry, and animal behavior are particularly encouraged to apply.

The laboratories of Drs. Peter LeWitt, Aloke Dutta and Sokol Todi are looking for a postdoctoral fellow to spearhead a new line of collaborative research among the three principal investigators. The postdoc will be housed in the Department of Pharmacology, in the Scott Hall Building of Basic Medical Sciences at Wayne State University’s School of Medicine. The major thrust of the research is for better understanding of the neurobiology of Parkinson’s Disease (PD) and translation of that knowledge to develop novel therapeutic approaches. The project stretches across disciplinesfrom medicinal chemistry to available cellular and animal models of PDand is geared towards achieving groundbreaking steps in the field. Among the research approaches to be investigated are gene therapy, exosome-delivered microRNA, ferroptosis inhibition, antioxidant therapeutics, and disease-related biomarkers.

This position will focus on the membrane properties (i.e., shape, and tension) involved in lipolysis as part of a collaboration between the Department of Physics and Astronomy and the Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics at Wayne State University. This research includes computational and experimental approaches in the laboratories of Professors Christopher V. Kelly, Y. Mindy Huang, and James G. Granneman. Competitive candidates will bring and develop expertise in fluorescence, molecular dynamics simulations, or cell biology. The specific tasks and mentorship plan for the fellow will be formulated based on their interests and ambitions.

The Experimental Relativistic Heavy-Ion (RHI) group at the Department of Physics and Astronomy of Wayne State University invites applications for up to two postdoctoral research associate positions. The Wayne State group is a member of the ALICE experiment at the LHC and the STAR experiment at RHIC and participates in the development of the physics program, and hardware construction, for the upcoming sPHENIX experiment. The WSU experimental RHI group benefits from close collaboration with a local high energy nuclear theory group. Wayne State is the leading institution in the JETSCAPE theory collaboration and an active member of the BEST Collaboration. The successful candidate(s) will conduct research and analyze the ALICE or STAR data in a direction aligned with the group’s interests, which include chiral and polarization phenomena, two- and multi-particle correlations, critical phenomena, anisotropic flow, femtoscopy, jet structure, and jet tomography.

Pathophysiology of opioid related sleep apnea. Determine effect of oxygen and acetazolamide on apneic threshold during sleep and determine cerebrovascular response to CO2 in opioid related sleep apnea. 

The work completed in the clinical lab is designed to explore if repeated daily exposure to mild intermittent hypoxia reduces sympathetic nervous system activity and blood pressure both directly, and indirectly via enhanced compliance with continuous positive airway pressure, in humans with sleep apnea that have intact or injured spinal cords.

A postdoctoral position is available in the lab of Dr. Emilio Mottillo at Henry Ford Hospital to study lipid metabolism. Founded in 1915 by auto pioneer Henry Ford and now one of the nation’s leading health care providers, Henry Ford Health System, is a not-for-profit corporation and has many highly productive labs studying metabolic disorders such as diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular disease and provides an outstanding environment for cutting-edge research.

Projects focus on molecular mechanisms of triacylglycerol metabolism related to metabolic diseases such as diabetes and fatty liver disease and include novel methods to image lipid metabolism.

Applications are invited for a postdoctoral research fellowship in the laboratory of Biodiversity, Pathogen Detection, and Molecular Aquatic Ecology. The Ram Laboratory at Wayne State University seeks a resourceful researcher to apply molecular and cellular techniques to problems of physiology, ecology and health. You will devote half your time to developing your own endowment-backed ideas in areas of biodiversity, physiological mechanisms and molecular technologies, while also participating with others in funded projects on the detection and biodiversity of predators, prey, and pathogens in environmental waters and vectors. For more information about the research projects in the Ram laboratory, visit the website.

Whole brain activity mapping of the maternal (rat) brain (on opioids). Opioid use disorder (OUD) is a global epidemic affecting a high proportion of child-bearing women. The drastic 4-fold increase in OUD among pregnant women from 1999-2014 has promoted opioid maintenance therapies (OMT) such as buprenorphine (BUP) to mitigate effects associated with opioid abuse. Endogenous opioids play a significant role in orchestrating neuronal adaptations within the maternal brain network (MBN) for the successful ‘switch’ from a nulliparous brain to a maternal brain to incentivize nurturing maternal behaviors from the dam. The proposed studies aim to use a translational rodent model to evaluate the effects of BUP compared to morphine on the maternal brain and behavior. Effects of gestational BUP and morphine exposure on neurochemical and activation pattern changes in the maternal brain will be evaluated using state of the art imaging techniques. Our proposal will be able to add to the preliminary human findings on altered functional connectivity in buprenorphine-exposed mothers by using ‘whole (half) brain activity mapping’ which will allow us to simultaneously illuminate activity at cellular resolution in several brain areas of the MBN and compare patterns between opioid-exposed and control dams and investigate associations with changes in maternal behaviors. We expect that perinatal exposure to BUP inhibits the neuronal ‘switch’ from aversive to rewarding perception of pups that is necessary to initiate appropriate maternal behavior thus subsequently influencing offspring survival. We hope to advance science on the consequences of opioid drug use/therapy during gestation and to apply these outcomes toward clinical knowledge to improve public health via effective translation, implementation, and dissemination of our scientific research findings