Postdoctoral Fellowships at the Vincent Center for Reproductive Biology

We are recruiting a postdoctoral fellow with expertise in immunology and/or neuroimmunology to work in the Edlow Laboratory within the Vincent Center for Reproductive Biology on NIH-funded projects focused on fetal brain-placental immune activation in the setting of maternal immune activation. Maternal immune-activating conditions of interest include obesity, diabetes, and viral infections. Experience in neuroscience, placental biology, and/or systems/computational biology is ideal, but not required. Our research broadly focuses on the programming effects of maternal immune activation on fetal and offspring brain development and behavior, and the placenta-brain connection. We utilize pre-clinical models and human samples to explore mechanisms underlying neurodevelopmental morbidity in offspring exposed to immune activation in utero, including but not limited to neuroinflammation, neuroimmune interactions, and the impact of offspring sex. Our approach is multidisciplinary and highly collaborative. Our laboratory is affiliated with Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, as well as with the Innovation Center on Sex Differences in Medicine.

Job Description

The Edlow Laboratory for basic and translational research is sited in the Vincent Center for Reproductive Biology (VCRB) on the main campus of Massachusetts General Hospital. Ongoing studies focus on the neurodevelopmental programming effects of maternal obesity, maternal high-fat diet, and maternal viral infection (e.g. with SARS-CoV-2) during pregnancy and lactation. We work both with mouse models of maternal obesity as well as with human participant samples (placenta, maternal blood, cord blood, and others). We evaluate the impact of maternal immune activation on placental and fetal immune activation. In the murine model, we assess fetal, juvenile, and adult offspring brain development using molecular and immunohistochemical techniques, as well as neurobehavioral testing. Areas of focus include: (1) the effects of maternal immune activation on offspring cognition and mood outcomes (anxiety, depression), particularly as they relate to neuroinflammation and brain-immune interactions; (2) Developing novel cellular models of fetal brain development using proxy cell types; (3) Developmental programming of offspring feeding behaviors (reward-based feeding governed by the mesolimbic dopamine circuit) and offspring metabolic parameters (including insulin resistance, body fat composition, and dysregulation of leptin, ghrelin, and other peripheral and central hormonal signaling); (4) Utilizing novel targeted therapeutics to improve offspring neurodevelopmental outcomes; and (5) Elucidating the role of fetal and offspring sex in mediating the effects of maternal diet-induced obesity on neurodevelopment.

The position requires:

- Extensive experience with molecular techniques including RNA/DNA/protein assays

- Experience with cell isolations from tissue and blood (animal or human) and with techniques such as RNA-sequencing and flow cytometry/FACS is preferred

- Extensive experience with mouse models and handling, including rodent surgery

- Experience either performing or working with bioinformatics analyses of sequencing data is preferred

- Experience with brain retrieval, tissue preservation for immunohistochemical analyses, brain or placental sectioning and tissue staining, and neurobehavioral testing is preferred

-Skill in collection, organization, management, and analysis of complex data sets including record-keeping for large mouse colonies and neurobehavioral test results, among others

-Skill in experimental design, protocol development, and troubleshooting

-Skill in data analysis using statistical analytical tools is required. Experience with Graphpad Prism and/or SPSS/STATA/SAS is preferred

- Experience preparing manuscripts for publication, experience with review and summarization of relevant literature for manuscript background and grant preparation. Preparation of study findings and presentation at professional meetings will also be strongly encouraged

There are many opportunities for education and growth in our multidisciplinary, collaborative research program that brings together a diverse group of obstetrician-gynecologists, neuroscientists, immunologists, endocrinologists, animal neuroimagers at the world-class Athinoula Martinos Center for Brain Imaging, and translational and clinical researchers at the Innovation Center on Sex Differences in Medicine.

Requirements

Applicant should have a PhD, ideally in immunology or neuroscience. Applicant with extensive experience with molecular techniques, rodent models, and immunohistochemistry are also encouraged to apply.

Please email a CV and cover letter of interest to Ms. Jamie Murphy, Administrative Director for the Vincent Center of Reproductive Biology, at JPMURPHY1@mgh.harvard.edu, indicating that you are applying for the postdoctoral position in Dr. Edlow’s lab. Contact information for three professional references (names, address, phone and e-mail) will also be requested during the interview process.

Massachusetts General Hospital is a teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School and an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, protected veteran status or status as an individual with a disability.

Current research in Wang Lab at the Vincent Center for Reproductive Biology, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, mainly focuses on gynecological cancers, with an emphasis on ovarian high-grade serous carcinoma (HGSOC) and cervical squamous cell carcinoma (CSCC). The Research Fellow will be initially trained in the research laboratory and is expected to work independently after training to accomplish the proposed HGSOC/CSCC research projects under the supervision of Dr. Cheng Wang (Principal Investigator). The applicant is also responsible for documenting, analyzing and reporting the results derived from cellular models, mouse models and/or patient samples.

Job Description

The Research Fellow will receive training in cancer biology, ovarian/cervical cancer etiology, gynecological cancer cellular and mouse models, as well as many other laboratory research tools for studying ovarian/cervical cancer prevention and early detection. After initial training, the Research Fellow is expected to independently design and perform experiments to accomplish the proposed translational biomedical research project. The incumbent will study and collect basic research data related to assigned projects, perform statistical analysis of the generated results, prepare graphs, figures for publication and oral or poster presentations.

The Research Fellow is expected to maintain multiple breeding colonies of transgenic mice that are associated with his project. The candidate will routinely perform genotyping, small surgery in experimental animals, collect and process tissue samples from transgenic mice for histological, pathological and biochemical analyses.

The Research Fellow should perform independent literature searches to broaden knowledge in women’s cancers. S/he is expected to independently modify techniques as necessary to meet experimental needs under the direction of the Principal Investigator.

The incumbent should maintain accurate, legible research notebooks, analyze and report results to the principal investigator after completion of experiments. The candidate is required to meet weekly with the Principal Investigator to review research results, develop plans for additional experiments and discuss potential new areas of interest.

The incumbent is expected to be an excellent team worker and be willing to seek feedback from senior lab personnel or the supervisor for any questions, troubleshooting, or required training. He/she will also collaborate with other investigators in other laboratories or departments to ensure the success of the project. The candidate should feel comfortable to work with scientists across a broad range of backgrounds.

The incumbent will attend all laboratory and general Vincent Center for Reproductive Biology (VCRB) meetings, participate in laboratory, VCRB and departmental training and educational events (e.g., chemical and biosafety training, animal care practices, etc.), practice laboratory safety in accordance with Mass General and VCRB guidelines, and interact constructively with all laboratory personnel in the VCRB and the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

The position requires:

1. Must be able to work initiatively, accurately, consistently, and independently, display initiative to introduce Innovations to research study, and have good time management skills

2. Have experience in High-throughput screening based on cellular and animal models, data analysis/visualization, and screening results verification. Have experience in using online cancer genetic and genomic databases, NCBI sponsored gene and protein databases, as well as other online databases and tools

3. Have the ability to maintain multiple breeding colonies of mice that are required in his/her project, develop and use laboratory animal models under the direction of the principal investigator, collect tissue samples and prepare for histological and molecule analyses

4. Have experience or ability to: 1) prepare and maintain cell and tissue cultures; 2) perform routine cell biology assays; 3) develop and use cellular and laboratory animal models under the direction of the principal investigator, collect cell and tissue samples and prepare nucleic acid/protein/lipid samples for molecule analysis; 4) perform basic molecular biology assays (e.g., molecular cloning, mutation analyses, site-directed mutagenesis, vector construction, RT-PCR, Western and Northern blotting, EMSA, kinase assays, and ELISA); 5) perform histological analyses (e.g., tissue preparation, sectioning, regular H-E staining, immunohistochemistry, immunocytochemistry and in situ hybridization)

5. Reliably maintain accurate records of experiments performed, attend weekly lab meeting to conduct formal presentations of research methodology, findings and conclusions

6. PC and Mac competency is required

7. Have excellent communication/interpersonal skills, and work cooperatively with others and be willing to learn new techniques.

Requirements

A Ph.D. degree in life science or related area is required.

Please email a CV and cover letter of interest to CWANG34@mgh.harvard.edu indicating that you are applying for the postdoctoral position in Dr. Wang’s lab. Two letters of reference and a brief writing sample will also be requested during the interview process.

Massachusetts General Hospital is a teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School and an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, protected veteran status or status as an individual with a disability.