Two Post-Doctoral Research Positions in the Maizels Lab at the University of Glasgow
We are advertising 2 posts in Rick Maizels’ lab within the Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology (WCIP), at Glasgow University’s Institute for Infection, Immunity and Inflammation (3is). Both are funded through grants from the Wellcome Trust, and the post-holders will join a group which currently includes 2 further post-docs, 2 technicians, a research assistant and a PhD student. The WCIP and 3is offer outstanding core facilities including imaging, flow cytometry and protein production, in a highly supportive and interactive environment.
Post 1 – TGF-β mimics from helminth parasites.
Our project, funded through a Wellcome Trust Investigator Award, involves a family of parasite-derived cytokine mimics (TGMs) which activate the TGF-β signalling pathway, with profound effects on host cells, in particular generating regulatory T cells. We aim to (i) map the multiple interactions between parasite proteins and host receptors, and exploit these to develop new products for dampening inflammation; (ii) understand the in vivo role of TGMs in immune modulation and blocking immunity to infection; and (iii) search for further TGF-β pathway players from other parasitic helminths. The project involves recombinant protein expression, cellular and biochemical assays for receptor activation, and studies on the effects of TGMs or their blocking antiboides in vivo.
This post, Ref. 040344, is funded for 3 years in the first instance, and applications may be made on the University of Glasgow website through the following link:
https://my.corehr.com/pls/uogrecruit/erq_jobspec_version_4.jobspec?p_id=040344
Post 2 – Role of tuft cells in intestinal immunity to helminths
This project is funded by a Wellcome Trust Collaborative Grant in combination with partners in Glasgow, Moredun Research Institute in Edinburgh, and Montpellier, France. The objectives are (i) to identify helminth-derived ligands recognised by tuft cell receptors that may spark the Th2 response in vivo; and (ii) to determine the role of tuft cell products in the effector response which clears parasites in a Th2-dependent manner. The studies involve collaboration with Glasgow Polyomics for metabolomic work, and the use of novel genetic constructs to analyse immune effectors in vivo.
This post, Ref 039964, is funded for 2 years and applications may be made on the University of Glasgow website through the following link:
https://my.corehr.com/pls/uogrecruit/erq_jobspec_version_4.jobspec?p_id=039964
Applications for either or both posts may be submitted through the UoG website up until the closing date, 1st October 2020. Interested candidates are welcome to contact Rick Maizels (email rick.maizels@glasgow.ac.uk) at any time before that date.
WCIP Website : https://www.gla.ac.uk/researchinstitutes/iii/wcip/
