layiq
/la·yiq/adjective
worthy; deserving; fitting; suitable.
A role, opportunity, or path that merits attention, time, and pursuit.
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Job opportunity
Postdoctoral Fellow - Molecular Oncology
Houston, TX
Source: MD Anderson Cancer Center careers · View original posting
Employer job description
From MD Anderson Cancer Center's posting. “We” and “our” refer to the employer.
A postdoctoral fellow position is available immediately to lead studies on a newly defined metabolic-immune circuit that drives resistance to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) in melanoma. The project builds on our finding that ICI-induced inflammation (IL-6/IFN- to TOPK to HECTD1) accelerates hepatic PAH degradation, raising systemic phenylalanine (Phe), which then engages a neutrophil GRIK1-CaMKIV-STING-type I IFN program that drives CD8+ T cell exhaustion.
The fellow will test two clinically compatible interventions: hepatocyte-targeted HULC RNA mimetics that stabilize PAH, and repurposed topiramate, an FDA-approved GRIK1 inhibitor, that blocks neutrophil Phe sensing.
This work spans genetically engineered and humanized (huCD34-MISTRG) mouse models, patient-derived melanoma models, hiPSC-derived hepatocytes, RNA therapeutic delivery, multiplex spatial proteomics, and a 562-patient clinically annotated cohort. The project is supported by an established team of co-investigators in ICI and T cell biology, neutrophil biology, dermatopathology, clinical melanoma, biostatistics, and nanomedicine.