Senior Scientist - Hematology & Medical Oncology

The Senior Scientist provides scientific and technical leadership in the management, design and execution of a clinical research program. With a broad range of skills and experience, this individual is a critical component of the Principle Investigators laboratory, demonstrating a capacity for collaboration and innovation with consistently high productivity.

Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT) and prevents this curative therapy from wider application in cancer patients.  Gastrointestinal (GI) GVHD is the target organ that is most resistant to steroid treatment and acute GVHD in the GI tract accounts for the vast majority non-relapse mortality.  This research project seeks to elucidate its basic biology and develop new laboratory strategies to predict its long-term outcomes.  It explores the regeneration of crypts by Intestinal Stem Cells (ISCs) during GVHD, using in vitro model pathways that control inflammatory cell death.

• Designs and conducts complex clinical research studies requiring the determination and evaluation of alternative methods, diagnosis and treatment. 
• Dissects euthanized mice for organoids. Performs organoid establishment and passage after exacting murine organoids from the duodenum and the colon. Flushes with cold phosphate-buffered saline (PBS), opens longitudinally, and then thoroughly washes to remove fecal content.
• Analyzes organoids in single-cell suspensions.  Stains cell with live/dead violet followed by anti-mouse epithelial cell adhesion molecule.  Utilizes BD LSRFortessa flow cytometer to analyze epithelial and immune cell populations.
• Analyzes and interprets laboratory data from research studies including usage of Western Blots where snap-frozen organoids are lysed in Triton buffer on ice and are then centrifuged.  Quantifies data using ImageJ software. Creates data visualization and statistical analysis using GraphPad Prism.
• Explores subject area and defines scope and selection of problems for investigation through conceptually related studies. 
• Develops hypotheses to be tested and methodology for evaluating results. 
• Communicates research results to the scientific community via published papers
• Coordinates seminars and discussions for dissemination of knowledge and results of research in order to develop new diagnosis or treatment. 
• Develops new proposals for research and obtain support for new and/ or continuing research activities. 
• Makes decisions and recommendations that have a major impact on extensive scientific research activities.   
• Supervises graduate/ medical students and trainees.  
• Performs other related duties.

• Ph.D in sciences or related field
• Minimum five years of experience with scientific investigation.
• Must have demonstrated outstanding achievement in a field of research
• Must have contributed to a number of peer-reviewed publications, inventions or the like, at least some of which have had a major impact on advancing the field or discipline.
• Prior experience successfully securing external grant funding is highly desirable.