Postdoctoral Research Associate - David Solecki lab
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
Summary
The Solecki Lab is building imaging-based biosensor platforms that make chromatin states and cell polarity decisions visible in living neurons and experimentally queryable as cell-biological systems. We are looking for postdoctoral fellows who do not simply want to perform experiments but want to help build the experimental framework for understanding how cell biological transitions unfold as neurons mature and assemble into brain circuits by watching these processes happen in real time.
Job description
Postdoctoral researchers in the lab will carry out their own independent research projects and make use of live-cell biosensors, advanced microscopy, neuronal differentiation systems, acute perturbations, and quantitative image analysis in order to find out how intracellular state transitions are organized in developing neurons. The aim is not merely to apply existing tools, but to help in the development of new experimental approaches, including probes, assays, imaging strategies, and perturbation methods, that make previously invisible cell biological processes visible, measurable, and capable of being tested mechanistically.
Successful fellows will have the opportunity to define a major project within the lab’s broader effort to understand neuronal maturation, chromatin-state dynamics, polarity transitions, nuclear organization, and circuit assembly. Fellows will work closely with the PI and an interdisciplinary team to develop high-risk, high-reward experiments, generate first-author publications, present at national and international meetings, and build a scientific identity at the interface of developmental neurobiology, live-cell imaging, biosensor engineering, and quantitative cell biology.
Join a supportive multi-disciplinary lab comprised of biophysicists, optics experts, data scientists, cell-biologists and developmental neurobiologists that unravel how the brain is built during development. You will be on the ground floor of transformative biosensor platforms with exposure to cutting-edge imaging technologies like lattice light sheet or super-resolution platforms, data science core labs, and an unusually collaborative environment where new imaging probes, microscopy, and analytical methods converge on fundamental problems in brain development.
The Ideal Candidate will have:
- A PhD in cell biology, biophysics, gene regulation, neuroscience or related discipline
- Prior experience in live-cell imaging, super-resolution microscopy, and/or imaging probe development.
- Familiarity with programming languages (e.g. R, Python) for data analysis
- Strong record of peer-reviewed publications
- Ability to independently design and execute experiments and interpret data
- Ability for cogent experimental preparation, validation, documentation, and troubleshooting.
Requirements
- A PhD in cell biology, biophysics, gene regulation, neuroscience or related discipline
- Prior experience in live-cell imaging, super-resolution microscopy, and/or imaging probe development.
- Familiarity with programming languages (e.g. R, Python) for data analysis
- Strong record of peer-reviewed publications
- Ability to independently design and execute experiments and interpret data
- Ability for cogent experimental preparation, validation, documentation, and troubleshooting.
Company overview
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is a world-renowned pediatric research and treatment institution headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, dedicated to advancing cures for childhood cancer and other catastrophic diseases. Founded in 1962 by entertainer Danny Thomas, it stands as the first and only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center devoted exclusively to children. The hospital operates on a unique funding model where families never receive bills for treatment, travel, housing, or food, with costs exceeding $2 billion annually primarily supported by donations through its fundraising organization ALSAC. St. Jude treats approximately 8,600 patients each year from all 50 states and around the world, with a focus on acute lymphoblastic leukemia, brain tumors, sickle cell disease, and infectious diseases. The institution employs over 7,000 staff members and maintains eight affiliate clinics across the United States. Through its St. Jude Global initiative, the hospital shares research and treatment protocols internationally, partnering with more than 350 institutions in over 90 countries. St. Jude has been instrumental in increasing childhood cancer survival rates from 20% in 1962 to over 80% today, while maintaining a robust research program that includes gene therapy, bone marrow transplantation, and precision medicine approaches.