Identifying mechanisms and therapeutic targets of stromal senescence in prostate cancer development

A postdoctoral research position supported by long-term NIH R37 grant funding is available in the laboratory of Marcus Ruscetti, Ph.D. to work on projects to:

(1) Uncover heterogeneous senescent cell types and immune cell niches that promote tumor progression using single cell and spatial transcriptomic approaches.

(2) Determine the impact of age-related senescence on prostate cancer onset and immune suppression.

These projects, and my laboratory, lie at the intersection of cancer genetics and tumor immunology, and at the interface of basic science and translational medicine. Our long-term goals will be to translate our basic understanding of how senescence biology regulates critical tumor-immune interactions into the development of therapeutic strategies to treat patients with deadly pancreatic and prostate cancers.

Our lab is part of the Department of Molecular, Cell and Cancer Biology (MCCB) at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School (UMCMS) in Worcester, MA, giving us access to a multitude of state-of-the-art core facilities, shared equipment, and a highly stimulating and interactive intellectual environment. UMCMS is a vibrant and exciting research community, with ~3,000 faculty, including ~320 basic science principal investigators and ~2,500 clinical faculty. The UMCMS faculty includes members of the National Academy of Sciences, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. UMCMS faculty have won several major awards, including the Keck Award, the Lasker Prize, and the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, among others.

Qualifications:

Candidates are required to have the following credentials:

• A recent Ph.D. and/or M.D. degree in Biology, or a related field, with no more than 1 year of postdoctoral experience
• A 1^st author publication in a peer-reviewed scholarly journal from their Ph.D. and/or M.D. research
• Previous mouse experience (at least 1 year)
• A prior background in cancer biology
• Technical proficiency in cell culture and molecular biology techniques

Candidates with the following qualifications are encouraged to apply:

       (1) Strong self-motivation

       (2) Ability to collaborate within and outside the laboratory

       (3) Ability to plan, organize and meet deadlines

       (4) Ability to independently develop, execute, and analyze experiments

       (5) Experience in genome-editing technologies, histology, microscopy, immunology, flow cytometry, and high-

             throughput sequencing.

To apply, please send your cover letter (1-page limit) explaining your most significant accomplishments and how they relate to our work and CV to Dr. Marcus Ruscetti.

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