Postdoctoral position in Computational Biology at INGM
A three year postdoctoral position is available starting from October 2019 in the unit of Genome Biology of Dr. Beatrice Bodega at INGM, Milan, Italy.
Project Description:
Our work is focused on understanding the impact of Transposable elements in human genome regulation, particularly in human T lymphocytes and cancer biology.
Non-coding regulatory RNAs (ncRNAs) represent a cell specific source of key epigenetic players involved in cell identity and differentiation; interestingly among the non-coding fraction of the human genome, 69% is represented by DNA repeats. A plethora of potential regulatory functions for expressed repeats have been assayed using data generated by the ENCODE and FANTOM consortia. These studies indicate a functional role for repetitive DNA, in particular Transposable Elements (TEs) in cell identity by means of repeat-encoded, ncRNA-mediated mechanisms. Very recently, L1s have been described as chromatin associated RNAs, regulating chromatin accessibility and the transcription of a subsets of specific genes in mESCs, suggesting a novel ncRNAs like function.
In the current project, with the use of integrated multi-omics approaches (RNA-seq; whole genome sequencing, chromatin RNA-seq, imaging-based approaches) we intend to decipher at high resolution TEs dynamics in the tumor microenvironment in order to define a tumor specific transcriptional signature that possibly contributes to the cell-cell networks between malignant and immune cells within tumor ecosystem. Moreover, we aim to identify novel and non-coding transcript that represents an original resource to find targetable RNA molecules in the tumor immunology field.
We are seeking highly motivated candidates with a particular interest in epigenetic regulation of transcription, which will work in close proximity with wet biologists to develop novel computational tools in DNA repeats biology. Moreover, they will get benefit from being part of the Biocomputing Unit of the Institute.
Qualifications:
- Potential candidates should hold (or about to obtain) a PhD, or three years after degree experience, in computational biology, bioinformatics or related fields.
- Previous experiences in handling next generation sequencing (NGS) data sets (i.e. RNA-seq, ChIP-seq) and in programming (R, Perl, etc) are required skills for this position.
- We expect our new team members to be creative and interested in science and in developing novel computational tools.
- Given the collaborative and multidisciplinary nature of the project, good communication and understanding of genome biology are also strongly recommended. International mobility will be considered a major plus.
Please apply by sending a letter of motivation describing your interest in this research and past research experiences, a curriculum vitae and names of at least two referees to:
Dr. Beatrice Bodega, Istituto Nazionale di Genetica Molecolare (INGM)
E-Mail: bodega@ingm.org
For additional info, please visit INGM website: http://www.ingm.org
