Postdoctoral Position

The National Institute on Aging (NIA), a major research component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), is recruiting for a postdoctoral position in the Section on Gene Targeting, Laboratory Molecular Biology and Immunology.

A postdoctoral position is immediately available for a motivated individual with an interest in the maintenance of genomic stability, and the relationship between replication stress, aging, and cancer. Training in chemistry, biochemistry, or molecular and cellular biology is advantageous.

Replication stress occurs when replisomes are slowed or stalled by impediments including alternate DNA structures, protein DNA complexes, and chemical adducts. Failure to overcome these challenges can result in cell death, genomic rearrangements, developmental disorders, and/or cellular senescence. We have developed novel assays for studying encounters of replisomes with potent blocks and identified a new pathway that enables cells to restart DNA synthesis past these blocks (Mol. Cell 52, 434, 2013, Cell Rep. 27, 1794, 2019). Recently, we discovered two biochemically distinct replisomes. One is preferentially active in euchromatin while the other is biased towards heterochromatin (Nat. Commun. 11, 3951, 2020). These two species are present in unstressed cells and during replication stress acquire additional proteins, specific to each form, that enable the restart pathway. Our findings have implications for DNA replication, the biology of cancer and aging, and genetic disorders in which the cellular response to replication stress is defective. Our current research is focused on the factors that distinguish and localize the two replisomes and the development of novel strategies for imaging replication stress in live cells.

The NIA provides an outstanding research environment, excellent fellowship support, and ample opportunities for young scientists to launch their own independent research careers.

Interested candidates must have a Ph.D. or M.D. with less than five years of relevant postdoctoral experience. Salary is commensurate with experience and accomplishments. Benefits include health, vision and dental individual/family plans. 

How to apply: Submit a cover letter describing your research experience and interests, CV including bibliography, and references (or contact information for 3 references) to:

Michael Seidman, Ph.D., Chief, Section on Gene Targeting, Laboratory of Molecular Biology and Immunology, NIA-NIH, 251 Bayview Blvd, Baltimore, MD 21224 USA.  E-mail: seidmanm@grc.nia.nih.gov  

For additional information, visit https://www.nia.nih.gov/research/labs/lmbi/section-gene-targeting

DHHS and NIH are Equal Opportunity Employers. The NIH is dedicated to building a diverse community in its training and employment programs.