Position: Postdoctoral Fellow
Site: Krembil Research Institute
Department: Neurology
Reports to: Principal Investigator
Hours: 37.5 hours per week
Status: Temporary Full-time (1 year)
University Health Network (UHN) is looking for an advanced trainee to fill the key role of Postdoctoral Fellow in our Krembil Research Institute.
Transforming lives and communities through excellence in care, discovery and learning.
The University Health Network, where “above all else the needs of patients come first”, encompasses Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, Toronto General Hospital, Toronto Western Hospital, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and the Michener Institute of Education at UHN. The breadth of research, the complexity of the cases treated, and the magnitude of its educational enterprise has made UHN a national and international resource for patient care, research and education. With a long tradition of groundbreaking firsts and a purpose of “Transforming lives and communities through excellence in care, discovery and learning”, the University Health Network (UHN), Canada’s largest research teaching hospital, brings together over 16,000 employees, more than 1,600 physicians, 8,000+ students, and many volunteers. UHN is a caring, creative place where amazing people are amazing the world.
University Health Network (UHN) is a research hospital affiliated with the University of Toronto and a member of the Toronto Academic Health Science Network. The scope of research and complexity of cases at UHN have made it a national and international source for discovery, education and patient care. Research across UHN’s seven research institutes spans the full spectrum of diseases and disciplines, including cancer, cardiovascular sciences, transplantation, neural and sensory sciences, musculoskeletal health, rehabilitation sciences, and community and population health. Find out about our purpose, values and principles here.
Within this position, the Postdoctoral Fellow will pursue research on molecular pathways related to Alzheimer’s disease and other dementing disorders. The studies will explore mechanisms related to inflammatory reactions in brain of patients with such diseases as well as molecular pathways explaining familial early-onset disease forms. Mainly, the work will be focused on the role of different inflammatory mediators and how they may differ between the respective disorders. Also, effects of recently identified mutations in either of several disease genes will be investigated. The applicant will make use of a broad range of histopathological, molecular biological and cell biological techniques. By probing brain tissue sections and homogenates with immunohistochemistry and western blot against neuroinflammatory mediators, the disease- and region-specific expression of such molecules will be explored. By transfection of cultured cells with plasmids encoding for mutated protein variants it will be investigated how altered forms of critical downstream molecules could cause pathogenic effects.
Qualifications
The following qualifications are required:
• Completion of a PhD degree within the past 5 years preferably in the field of biomedical sciences
• Previous experience of basic laboratory techniques, such as immunohistochemistry, western blot, cell culture work
• Previous experience of PCR, including molecular cloning
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Excellent organizational and time management skills
• Ability to produce high quality work
• Ability to maintain confidentiality
• Ability to work independently, but also to function as part of a team
• Ability to work well under pressure and use good judgment in assessing difficult situations
Vaccines (COVID and others) are a requirement of the job unless you have an exemption on a medical ground pursuant to the Ontario Human Rights Code.
More information and apply here.