Job Information
- Organisation/Company: The International Institute of Molecular Mechanisms and Machines Polish Academy of Sciences
Offer Description
The International Institute of Molecular Mechanisms and Machines (IMol PAS) is an international research institute in Warsaw, Poland, conducting interdisciplinary research at the interface of molecular biology, biotechnology, biophysics, bioinformatics, chemistry, and medicine.
Applications are invited for a Postdoctoral Researcher position in the newly established Goradia Lab to work on the SONATA Bis-15 project funded by the National Science Centre (NCN), Poland.
The successful candidate will join an ambitious research programme investigating the molecular mechanisms by which higher-order protein assemblies regulate transcriptional repression and chromatin organization in mammalian cells.
Principal Investigator: Dr. Nishit Goradia
Project Title: Molecular Mechanism of CtBP corepressor activity inactivation by RAI2-induced CtBP polymerization
About the Lab:
The Goradia Lab investigates how higher-order protein assemblies regulate transcription, chromatin organization, and cell fate. Our research combines molecular and cellular biology, quantitative fluorescence imaging, protein biochemistry, proteomics, and functional genomics to uncover fundamental mechanisms governing transcriptional regulation and their dysregulation in cancer.
Our long-term goal is to understand how the spatial organization of transcriptional regulators influences gene expression, cellular plasticity, and disease progression. By integrating mechanistic biology with systems-level approaches, we aim to reveal fundamental principles of gene regulation that extend beyond the CtBP transcriptional corepressor system.
As a newly established laboratory at IMol PAS, we offer an exciting opportunity to help build an internationally connected research programme within a highly collaborative scientific environment.
Research Project
About the Project
Transcriptional corepressors are essential regulators of gene expression, yet the molecular mechanisms by which they organize within the nucleus to control transcription remain poorly understood.
Our recent work, published in Nature Communications (2024), uncovered a previously unrecognized mechanism in which the tumour suppressor RAI2 induces higher-order polymerization of the transcriptional corepressor CtBP, resulting in the formation of supramolecular nuclear assemblies that relieve CtBP-mediated transcriptional repression. This discovery establishes an entirely new paradigm for understanding how multivalent protein interactions regulate transcriptional corepressor activity and provides the conceptual foundation for the SONATA Bis project.
Building upon this discovery, the SONATA Bis project seeks to define the molecular mechanisms by which RAI2-induced CtBP polymerization remodels transcriptional corepressor complexes, reorganizes chromatin-associated regulatory networks, and ultimately influences gene expression.
To address these questions, the project integrates molecular biology, mammalian cell biology, quantitative fluorescence microscopy, protein biochemistry, quantitative proteomics, and functional genomics to investigate transcriptional regulation across multiple spatial and molecular scales.
The project encompasses three interconnected research directions:
- Determine how RAI2-induced polymerization remodels CtBP-containing transcriptional corepressor complexes.
- Define the spatial organization and dynamics of CtBP polymer assemblies within the cell nucleus.
- Determine how CtBP polymerization influences chromatin regulation and transcriptional programs.
Together, these studies will establish a comprehensive mechanistic framework describing how higher-order protein assemblies regulate transcription and will provide new insights into transcriptional dysregulation in cancer.
Your Role
The successful candidate will play a leading scientific role in the SONATA Bis project, driving the mechanistic and functional genomics components while working closely with the Principal Investigator to shape the scientific direction of the newly established Goradia Lab.
The project will involve designing and executing experiments using mammalian cell biology, CRISPR/Cas9 genome engineering, molecular biology, protein biochemistry, quantitative proteomics, and functional genomics to investigate how RAI2-induced CtBP polymerization regulates transcriptional repression.
The successful candidate will establish and optimize molecular and cellular experimental workflows, including in-house sample preparation and optimization of chromatin profiling approaches (e.g. ATAC-seq, ChIP-seq, or related methods) to investigate CtBP-mediated transcriptional regulation. Sequencing-based analyses will be performed through collaborations with external sequencing facilities and scientific collaborators, while the postdoctoral researcher will lead experimental design, sample preparation, quality control, and the integration and biological interpretation of imaging, biochemical, proteomic, and functional genomic datasets.
Candidate regulatory pathways and molecular targets emerging from genome-wide analyses will be prioritized for mechanistic validation using molecular, cellular, and functional approaches in relevant mammalian cell models. As the project develops, the successful candidate will work closely with collaborators possessing complementary expertise in functional genomics to support the implementation, optimization, and troubleshooting of genome-wide experimental approaches.
The project is embedded within an international collaborative network and includes established collaborations with the EMBL Imaging Centre (Heidelberg), the Microscopy Core Facility at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE), and the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ), Leipzig. Additional collaborations with experts in functional genomics and external sequencing facilities will further strengthen the genome-wide components of the project as they develop.
Beyond conducting research, the successful candidate will contribute to the development of the Goradia Lab by mentoring junior researchers, participating in scientific discussions, coordinating collaborative activities, preparing manuscripts for publication in leading international journals, and contributing to future fellowship and grant applications.
Selected publication underpinning the project
Goradia N. et al. (2024). Master corepressor inactivation through multivalent SLiM-induced polymerization mediated by the oncogene suppressor RAI2. Nature Communications 15, 5259. (co-first author)
This publication provides the experimental and conceptual foundation for the SONATA Bis project and establishes the mechanistic framework that the successful candidate will further develop through multidisciplinary approaches spanning molecular biology, quantitative imaging, proteomics, and functional genomics.
We are looking for
Essential Qualifications
Applicants should have:
- A PhD in molecular biology, biochemistry, cell biology, cancer biology, genomics, or a related life science discipline.
- A strong publication record relative to their career stage.
- Demonstrated expertise in mammalian cell biology and molecular biology.
- Experience with CRISPR/Cas9 genome engineering or related genome editing approaches.
- Experience with protein biochemistry and protein interaction studies.
- Experience in at least one of the following areas: chromatin biology, transcriptomics, epigenomics, proteomics, or functional genomics.
- Experience establishing or optimizing molecular or genome-wide experimental workflows.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to independently design, execute, and interpret experiments.
- Excellent written and spoken English.
- Excellent organizational, communication, and teamwork skills.
Desirable Qualifications
The ideal candidate may also have experience in one or more of the following:
- Chromatin profiling approaches, including ATAC-seq, ChIP-seq, CUT&RUN, CUT&Tag, or related methodologies.
- Analysis or interpretation of transcriptomic, proteomic, epigenomic, or other multi-omics datasets.
- Quantitative fluorescence microscopy or live-cell imaging.
- Protein complex purification and quantitative proteomics.
- Transcriptional regulation, chromatin biology, intrinsically disordered proteins, biomolecular condensates, or cancer biology.
- Mentoring undergraduate, Master's, or PhD students.
- Working within interdisciplinary and international research environments.
Candidates with complementary expertise who are enthusiastic about developing new experimental approaches and working across disciplinary boundaries are strongly encouraged to apply.
We Offer
We offer an exciting opportunity to join a newly established research group at IMol PAS and contribute to an ambitious, internationally connected research programme investigating fundamental mechanisms of transcriptional regulation.
The successful candidate will receive:
- Full-time employment contract for the duration of the SONATA Bis project.
- Competitive salary in accordance with National Science Centre (NCN) regulations ~ 9500 gross/month.
- Expected start date: 1st January 2027 (or as soon as possible thereafter).
- Scientific independence with close interaction and mentoring from the Principal Investigator.
- The opportunity to play a leading scientific role in establishing the mechanistic and functional genomics components of a newly established laboratory.
- The opportunity to establish and implement functional genomics workflows, including chromatin profiling approaches, while working closely with external sequencing facilities and an expanding international network of collaborators.
- Interdisciplinary training spanning molecular biology, genome engineering, protein biochemistry, quantitative imaging, proteomics, and functional genomics.
- Active mentoring in scientific leadership, manuscript preparation, competitive fellowship applications, and grant writing to support the transition towards research independence.
- Access to state-of-the-art research infrastructure and core facilities for imaging, proteomics, genomics, and computational biology.
- Opportunities to collaborate with internationally recognized researchers through our scientific network, including the EMBL Imaging Centre (Heidelberg), the Microscopy Core Facility at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE), the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ), Leipzig, and additional collaborators specializing in functional genomics as the project develops.
- Opportunities to publish in leading international journals and contribute to future collaborative research initiatives.
- Opportunities to supervise and mentor PhD and undergraduate students.
- Participation in international conferences, workshops, collaborative research visits, and scientific networking activities.
- A highly collaborative, interdisciplinary, and international research environment.
- Medical package and social benefits (sports card, holiday bonus, and 36 days of paid holiday per year).
As one of the first members of the Goradia Lab, the successful candidate will have a unique opportunity to help shape the scientific direction of the laboratory, establish new experimental capabilities, contribute to the development of an internationally competitive research programme, and play a key role in building the laboratory's scientific culture.
Required Documents (in English)
Applicants should submit:
- Cover letter describing their research interests, previous research achievements, and motivation for joining the Goradia Lab.
- Curriculum Vitae (CV).
- Complete publication list.
- Contact details for at least two academic referees (recommendation letters may be requested at a later stage).
Application
If you are excited by fundamental questions in transcriptional regulation, enjoy combining mechanistic biology with interdisciplinary approaches, and are motivated to help establish a new internationally connected research programme, we encourage you to apply.
If you think you are the person we are looking for, please apply by filling in this form: https://forms.gle/Exoy7iw4U8cYLL9C6
Where to apply
Website: https://forms.gle/Exoy7iw4U8cYLL9C6
Requirements
- Research Field: Biological sciences » Biology
- Education Level: PhD or equivalent
Work Location(s)
- Number of offers available: 1
- Company/Institute: The International Institute of Molecular Mechanisms and Machines Polish Academy of Sciences
- Country: Poland
- State/Province: Mazowieckie
- City: Warsaw
- Postal Code: 02-247
- Street: Marcina Flisa 6
Contact
- State/Province: mazowieckie
- City: Warsaw
- Website: http://imol.instiutute
- Street: Flisa 6
- Postal Code: 02-247
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