Postdoctoral Research Associate

An NIH-funded Postdoctoral Research Associate position is available to study bacterial subversion of host lipid metabolism in the laboratory of Dr. Stacey Gilk in the Department of Pathology, Microbiology, and Immunology at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. The successful candidate will join an interdisciplinary research program investigating how the intracellular bacterial pathogen Coxiella burnetii, the causative agent of Q fever, reprograms host lipid metabolism to support infection and replication. Current projects focus on understanding how Coxiella manipulates lipid droplets and endoplasmic reticulum-lipid droplet (ER-LD) membrane contact sites through bacterial effector proteins, and how host lipid trafficking pathways contribute to pathogen survival. The postdoctoral fellow will employ a combination of cell biology, microbiology, molecular genetics, imaging, biochemistry, lipidomics, and metabolic approaches to characterize host-pathogen interactions and define mechanisms of lipid flux during intracellular infection.

Ideal candidates will have a PhD in microbiology, cell biology, molecular biology, biochemistry, genetics, immunology, or a related field. Experience in one or more of the following areas is desirable: host-pathogen interactions, microscopy, intracellular bacteria, lipid metabolism, membrane trafficking, organelle biology, or metabolomics/lipidomics. The successful candidate will be a highly motivated, independent, rigorous, and hypothesis-driven scientist who will be expected to participate in training of graduate students, lab meetings, and other duties appropriate to the applicant’s career goals.

Applications should be submitted to https://unmc.peopleadmin.com/postings/100327 and include:

A cover letter describing research experience, accomplishments, and future research interests and how they align with the position (maximum 2 pages)
Curriculum vitae, including a complete list of publications
Names and contact information for three references

Ability to visualize test results.