OPEN POSITIONS

The position is part of the ongoing project “innate T cell defense (iTD)” granted by the Tromsø Research Foundation and the University of Tromsø. In addition to the announced position, this project also involves a PhD fellow, a senior lab engineer and a senior scientist and will be conducted in close collaboration with the Fish vaccinology and immunology research group at the Norwegian College of Fishery Science within the Faculty for bioscience, fisheries and economics. The position will also include some academic duties such as supervision of master students involved in the project. The successful candidate will become a member of the fish immunology and vaccinology research group and will regularly interact with its members who work on different aspects of fish immunology and fish vaccines. 

The research project involves determining the roles of MHC class I-like genes in antigen presentation and activation of natural killer, unconventional and/or innate-like T cells in Atlantic salmon. Focus is on understanding the regulation, activation and functions of MHC class I like genes in response to viral challenges and during T cell development. Although fish possess immune systems resembling those seen in mammals, the organization of teleost fish (e.g. salmonid) immune systems and its T cell compartments differ in a number of fundamental aspects. MHC class I molecules are expressed on the surface of most cells and present self or non-self (e.g., viral or bacterial) antigens to effector cells such as T cells. Thus, MHC molecules provide the host a means of detecting infected cells. Similar to all jawed vertebrates A. salmon also have MHC class I like genes. To date, multiple families of MHC class I like genes have been identified in salmon but their function remains elusive. This project focuses on understanding the functional roles of MHC class I like gene families with the goal of using this knowledge to help improve fish vaccines. 

For further information, please contact: Eva- Stina Edholm, eva-stina.i.edholm@uit.no, phone: +47 77646112 The position’s field of research/field of work

Find this position at jobbnorge: http://www.jobbnorge.no/ledige-stillinger/stilling/163259/postdoctoral-fellow-in-fish-immunology-and-vaccinology-at-uit-the-arctic-university-of-norway-the-faculty-of-biosciences-fishery-and-economics