Post Doctoral Research Fellow - Infectious Disease & Vaccines: Immunology

Role Summary

Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Infectious Disease & Vaccines: Immunology at West Point, PA. Focus on immunology or vaccinology and adaptive immunological memory to investigate mechanisms regulating vaccine durability, with emphasis on long-lived plasma cells and memory B cells. Independent project launches, collaboration with mentors, and development of research plans to generate durable vaccine responses.

Responsibilities

• Establishment and optimization of vaccine models in pre-clinical animal species.
• Development of immunological assays to characterize antigen-specific humoral and cellular immune responses.
• Performing single cell assays including high-parameter flow cytometry and single cell omics profiling (e.g. single cell RNAseq, BCRseq, and ATACseq).
• Data interpretation, manuscript and patent preparation, publication, and presentation.

Qualifications

• Education: Ph.D. within 6 months of hire in Immunology, Vaccinology, or related field.
• Required Experience and Skills:
  • Expertise in the in vivo development of adaptive immunological memory.
  • Hands-on experience with pre-clinical animal models and manipulating samples from these models.
  • Aseptic tissue culture techniques; molecular biology fundamentals.
  • In vitro assay development and troubleshooting.
  • Immunological assays (ELISA, ELISPOT, high-parameter flow cytometry, cell sorting, in vitro restimulation).
  • Strong publication record and ability to design, execute, and interpret experiments.
  • Excellent communication and collaboration skills.
• Skills That Would Be a Plus But Not Required:
  • Expertise in B cell differentiation and B cell responses to vaccination or infection.
  • Familiarity with BSL2 viral pathogens (e.g. SARS-CoV-2, RSV).
  • Single-cell omics assays and data analysis experience.
  • BCR repertoire sequencing and analysis experience.
  • Experience with novel vaccine adjuvants and/or vaccine platforms.

Skills

• Accountability, Adaptability, Analytical Chemistry, Assay Development, Cell-Based Assays, Cell Culture Techniques, Clinical Immunology, Computational Biology, Data Analysis, Flow Cytometry, Immunoassays, Immunology, Immunotherapy, Infectious Disease, In Vitro Assays, In Vivo Mouse Models, Mathematical Biology, Molecular Biology, Research Planning, Scientific Writing, siRNA Knockdown