Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Cancer Immunology and Immunotherapy

Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Cancer Immunology and Immunotherapy

Postdoctoral research fellow positions will be available in the laboratory of Dr. Li (Lily) Wang at the Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Institute’s Department of Translational Hematology & Oncology Research (THOR), https://my.clevelandclinic.org/departments/cancer/depts/thor), located within the Lerner Research Institute (LRI), Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH. The Wang laboratory is relocating from the Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI to Cleveland Clinic, and will be engaging in cross-disciplinary studies by collaborating with basic and clinical researchers from LRI including the Department of Inflammation and Immunology (https://www.lerner.ccf.org/immuno/), and the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center, affiliated with Case Western Reserve University.

Immune-checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapies have revolutionized the field of Cancer Immunotherapy. However, the low response rate in a majority of patients indicates the urgent need to identify and target additional checkpoint regulators. The Wang lab was the first group to demonstrate that a new immune-checkpoint protein “V domain Immunoglobulin Suppressor of T cell Activation” (VISTA) is a promising target for cancer immunotherapy (1 – 5). Our studies show that VISTA regulates the effector functions of cytotoxic T cells, myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSC), and myeloid inflammatory DCs. Current projects are focusing on elucidating the molecular signaling mechanisms of VISTA and designing innovative approaches to target this checkpoint protein for cancer therapy.

We therefore seek talented and committed candidates with a recent Ph.D. in Biochemistry, Cell Biology, Immunology, or other relevant branches of biological sciences to join our team and make significant contributions to the field of Cancer Immunotherapy. Interested candidates should submit CV, a statement of research interests in a cover letter, and three references to John Pellecchia MS, Department Administrator, at pellecj@ccf.org
References:

1.Wang L, RubinsteinR, Lines LJ, Wasiuk A, AhonenC, GuoYX, LuLF, Gondek D, WangY, Fava RA, Fiser A, Almo S and Noelle RJ. (2011) ­­­VISTA, a novel Ig-superfamily ligand that negatively regulates T cell responses, J Exp Med. 208(3):577-92. PMC3058578
2. Le Mercier I, Chen W, Lines JL, Day M, Li J, Sergent P, Noelle RJ, Wang L (2014) VISTA regulates the development of protective anti-tumor immunity. Cancer Research, 74:1933-1944. PMC4116689
3. Wang L, Le Mercier I, Putra J, Chen W, Liu J, Schenk AD, Nowak EC, Suriawinata AA, Li J, Noelle RJ. (2014) Disruption of the immune-checkpoint VISTA gene imparts a proinflammatory phenotype with predisposition to the development of autoimmunity. PNAS. (41):14846-51 PMC4205642
4. Liu J, Yuan Y, Chen W, Putra J, Suriawinata AA, Schenk AD, Miller H, Guleria I, Barth RJ, Huang YH, Wang L (2015) Immune-checkpoint proteins VISTA and PD-1 nonredundantly regulate murine T-cell responses. PNAS. 112(21):6682-7, PMC4450438
5. Xu W, Tạ MH, Malarkannan S, Wang L(2018) Review: The structure, expression, and function of immune-checkpoint protein VISTA as a critical regulator of anti-tumor immunity, autoimmunity, and inflammation. Cellular & Molecular Immunology. 2018 May 15(5):438-446PMC6068175