Postdoctoral Fellow - Pancreatic Islet Biology and Physiology

Join the forefront of groundbreaking research at the Beckman Research Institute of City of Hope, where we''re changing lives and making a real difference in the fight against cancer, diabetes, and other life-threatening illnesses. Our dedicated and compassionate faculty and staff are driven by a common mission: Contribute to innovative approaches in predicting, preventing, and curing diseases, shaping the future of medicine through cutting-edge research.

A Postdoctoral Fellowship position is immediately available in the laboratory of Dr. Julia Panzer. The lab focuses on human islet physiology, with an emphasis on understanding how islet size, architecture, cell-cell interactions, and their microenvironment regulate endocrine function, to uncover mechanisms that can restore function in type 1 diabetes. Using primarily human isolated islets and living pancreatic tissue slices, we combine advanced confocal time-lapse imaging with dynamic perifusion assays to investigate cellular signaling, cell-cell communication, and hormone secretion at single-cell and tissue-wide levels.

You will join a dynamic research environment with opportunities to develop expertise in pancreatic physiology, advanced imaging, and translational diabetes research while contributing to projects aimed at understanding the regulation of islet cell function in health and disease.

As a successful candidate you will:

• Design and conduct independent and collaborative research projects focused on pancreatic islet biology and physiology.
• Perform functional studies using isolated islets, dispersed cells, and pancreatic tissue slices from human donors with and without diabetes.
• Apply confocal microscopy and live-cell imaging approaches to investigate cellular signaling and functional responses.
• Analyze and interpret physiological and imaging datasets and contribute to the development of new experimental approaches.
• Participate in manuscript preparation, presentation of findings at scientific meetings, and mentoring of trainees within the laboratory.
• Contribute to collaborative projects within a multidisciplinary research environment.

Your qualifications should include:

• Ph.D., M.D., or equivalent doctoral degree in physiology, cell biology, biomedical sciences, neuroscience, endocrinology, or a related field.
• Experience in cellular physiology and functional assays are required.
• Experience with confocal microscopy and quantitative image analysis is highly desirable.
• Experience working with primary cells and/or isolated pancreatic islets is preferred.
• Experience with pancreatic slice preparations is advantageous but not required.

City of Hope employees pay is based on the following criteria: work experience, qualifications, and work location.

City of Hope is an equal opportunity employer.

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