Vacant job

Lund University was founded in 1666 and is consistently ranked as one of the world's leading universities. There are around 47,000 students and more than 8,800 employees in Lund, Helsingborg, and Malmö. We unite in our efforts to understand, explain, and improve our world and the conditions of people.

Lund University welcomes applicants with diverse backgrounds and experiences. Gender equality, equal opportunities, and diversity are fundamental principles for all parts of our operations.

Workplace Description

The research group, led by university lecturer Charlotte Rolny, conducts experimental and translational research focusing on solid tumors.

We are part of Lund University’s cancer center at Medicon Village and belong to the Unit for Translational Cancer Research within the Department of Laboratory Medicine.

We are looking for a highly motivated postdoctoral researcher with expertise in bioinformatics. The goal is to identify gene signatures that can predict treatment responses and to discover new therapeutic targets to reprogram tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs)—immune cells that play a key role in the tumor microenvironment. The research group has been working for several years on reprogramming TAMs from a tumor-promoting to a tumor-suppressive state as a potential treatment. A recently identified signaling pathway by Rolny and colleagues, which regulates TAMs' tumor-promoting functions, has opened new possibilities for targeted immunotherapy. The project has a strong translational focus, where therapeutic strategies will be validated in patient material to ensure clinical relevance.

Read the full advertisement at https://www.lu.se/vacancies (https://www.lu.se/vacancies)

Responsibilities and Duties

The project has a particular focus on bioinformatics analysis of data from experimental model systems and patient material, but the tasks may broaden depending on the project's development. The postdoctoral researcher is expected to actively participate in seminars, group meetings, and other relevant research activities, as well as regularly present the project's progress in accordance with the overall project plan.

As a postdoctoral researcher, you will:

• Identify new targeted therapies that reprogram macrophages to a tumor-suppressive state.
• Map macrophage-specific gene signatures linked to patient survival, treatment response, and relapse.
• Define signatures in the tumor microenvironment with the potential to predict treatment outcomes.
• Perform omics data analysis to identify relevant downstream targets.
• Establish and maintain collaborations with colleagues for support in data analysis and interpretation of research results.

Main Duties

• Develop computational and analysis pipelines for spatial transcriptomics and multiplex imaging.
• Integrate image-based spatial data with transcriptomics and other multi-omics data for enhanced biological understanding.
• Collaborate closely with experimental biologists, clinicians, and data scientists.
• Design, test, and optimize tools for visualizing spatial and single-cell data.
• Contribute to manuscript writing, conference presentations, and grant applications.
• Maintain well-documented and reproducible code and share data/tools when appropriate.

Qualifications

Requirements for the Position:

• PhD in bioinformatics, computational biology, or another related quantitative field.
• Documented experience in analyzing spatial transcriptomics.
• Experience working with multiplex imaging techniques.
• Good programming skills in at least one scientific programming language.
• Solid understanding of statistical methods, machine learning, and/or image analysis pipelines.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Documented publication list demonstrating the ability to conduct and disseminate independent research.

Desirable Qualifications:

• Experience integrating multimodal omics data (single-cell RNA-seq + spatial + imaging + proteomics).
• Laboratory experience, particularly with techniques such as multiplex staining and spatial transcriptomics, is considered an asset.

Other Information

The position is temporary for two years with the possibility of extension for an additional year, i.e., up to 3 years total with a desired start date of 2026-02-01 or by agreement.

Eligibility

To be eligible for appointment as a postdoctoral researcher, the applicant must have obtained a PhD, or a foreign degree deemed equivalent to a PhD, in a subject area relevant to the position (i.e., biology, biomedicine, medicine, chemistry). The degree must have been obtained no more than three years prior to the date of the employment decision. If there are special reasons, the PhD may have been obtained earlier.

How to Apply

The position is applied for via the university's recruitment system. The application should include a personal letter describing how you meet the qualification requirements and why you are interested in the position. The application should also include a CV, including a publication list, a general description of previous research work, a copy of the PhD degree, and any other documents you wish to submit (copies of diplomas, transcripts, references, recommendation letters, etc.).

The Faculty of Medicine is an operational area within Lund University, responsible for education and research in medicine, care, and health. Education is conducted in close collaboration with healthcare and is well rooted in the faculty's strong research tradition. The faculty's research spans a wide field of experimental basic research, patient-oriented clinical research, and health sciences research. The Faculty of Medicine, with over 1,800 employees and 2,700 students in Lund, Malmö, and Helsingborg, is an intensive knowledge meeting place for students, teachers, and researchers from around the world.

The Department of Laboratory Medicine (ILM) is one of six departments at the Faculty of Medicine. We conduct leading research in the field of laboratory medicine, focusing on how diseases arise and how we can improve patient diagnostics and treatment. Some of our strongest areas of world-class research include cancer, genetics, and blood research.

We decline all contacts from advertisement sellers, recruitment, and staffing companies due to state procurement regulations.