Postdoctoral Fellow in Neurology (Wallings Lab)

Position Summary

The Wallings Lab at the Indiana University School of Medicine, Department of Neurology and Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, is seeking a highly motivated Postdoctoral Research Fellow to join our research team. Our lab focuses on the role of an aging immune system in neurodegenerative diseases, with a specific focus on immune cell exhaustion and immunosenescence in the peripheral immune system. Our long-term research mission is to leverage such mechanisms to develop more effective immunomodulatory interventions that delay or halt neurodegeneration.

We are seeking a highly motivated Postdoctoral Fellow to join our research team to investigate the role of immune cell exhaustion and biological immune aging in the heterogeneity of Parkinson's Disease (PD). This position is supported by a three-year award and focuses on understanding how immune cell exhaustion, familial PD mutations, mitochondrial dysfunction and chronic inflammation intersect to contribute to clinical and pathological heterogeneity in PD.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities

• Design, execute, and analyze experiments investigating immune cell exhaustion and neuroimmune interactions in the context of PD.
• Employ cutting-edge approaches including spectral flow cytometry, machine learning and irradiation techniques to generate bone marrow chimera models.
• Utilize mouse models and patient-derived samples to explore how biological immune aging contributes to heterogeneity in PD and how immune cell exhaustion may contribute to disease onset and progression.
• Perform statistical analyses, data integration, and interpretation of complex datasets.
• Contribute to manuscript preparation, grant writing, and presentation of research findings at meetings and conferences.
• Collaborate with team members across disciplines and institutes and mentor junior researchers or students when appropriate.
• Maintain accurate records, ensure compliance with laboratory safety standards, and contribute to a collaborative and innovative lab environment.