Postdoctoral studies in Computation Biology: Molecular Wound Healing (scholarship)

Do you want to contribute to top quality medical research?

We are seeking a highly motivated postdoctoral researcher in computational biology to join the Xu Landén group at Karolinska Institutet. Our research focuses on the molecular and cellular mechanisms of skin wound healing, with particular emphasis on chronic wounds, regulatory RNAs, and epigenetic memory. We combine molecular medicine, advanced omics technologies, bioinformatics, and clinical collaboration to address fundamental and translational questions in tissue repair.

As a member of our multidisciplinary team, you will work in a dynamic and supportive research environment with access to world-class infrastructure, strong clinical links, and excellent opportunities for scientific development.

Duties

The successful candidate will lead and support computational analyses of high-dimensional molecular data related to wound healing and skin biology. Responsibilities include:

• developing and applying reproducible pipelines for single-cell and spatial omics analyses
• performing quality control, preprocessing, integration, annotation, visualization, and downstream statistical analyses
• contributing to data management, workflow development, and reproducible computational environments
• supporting large-scale analyses in Linux and HPC environments helping maintain and improve the group’s computational infrastructure
• collaborating closely with wet-lab researchers, clinicians, and computational scientists
• contributing to manuscripts, grant applications, and scientific presentations
• supervising MSc and PhD student projects

Entry requirements

We are looking for a highly motivated postdoctoral researcher with strong analytical and programming skills, solid expertise in computational biology or bioinformatics, and a genuine interest in translational biomedical research.

Required qualifications

• PhD in bioinformatics, computational biology, systems biology, or a related field
• documented experience in omics data analysis, including bulk and single-cell RNA-seq, ATAC-seq, spatial transcriptomics, or related approaches
• strong programming skills in R and/or Python
• experience with reproducible data analysis, workflow development, and code-based project organization
• experience working in Linux-based environments and with large-scale data processing, preferably on HPC systems
• strong scientific writing skills and a solid publication record
• ability to work independently as well as collaboratively in an interdisciplinary research environment
• excellent communication skills in English

Meritorious qualifications The following experience will be considered an advantage:

• research experience in skin biology, tissue repair, reparative medicine, epigenetics, or RNA biology
• experience in multi-omics integration, advanced statistics, machine learning, or biological data visualization
• experience developing or maintaining shared research computing infrastructure
• experience in collaborative projects involving both experimental and computational researchers
• prior postdoctoral or equivalent full-time research experience after the PhD

Postdoctoral scholarships may be established for foreign researchers who pursue their merit in Sweden. A foreign researcher is a person living in another country who comes to Sweden with the intention of only staying in Sweden for all or part of their postdoctoral education at KI. Persons who are resident in Sweden and/or have carried out all or part of their academic education at KI or some other educational institution in Sweden cannot be considered for scholarships. The purpose of scholarships for postdoctoral qualification is to promote internationalization and contribute to research qualification after a doctorate or equivalent.

A scholarship for carrying out postdoctoral research can be granted for a maximum of two years within a four-year period following the receipt of a doctoral degree or equivalent.

To be eligible for a postdoctoral scholarship, the person must have obtained a doctorate, or a foreign degree deemed to be equivalent to a doctorate. Applicants who have not completed a doctorate at the end of the application period may also apply, provided that all requirements for a completed degree are met before the (intended) start date of the post-doctoral education.

What do we offer?

A creative and inspiring environment with wide-ranging expertise and interests. Karolinska Institutet is one of the world's leading medical universities. Here, we conduct innovative medical research and provide the largest range of biomedical education in Sweden. At KI, you get to meet researchers working with a wide range of specialisms and methods, giving you ample opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience with the various scientific fields within medicine and health. It is the crossover collaborations, which have pushed KI to where it is today, at the forefront of global research. Several of the people you meet in healthcare are educated at KI. A close relationship with the health care providers is important for creating groundbreaking top quality education and research. Students and employees have free access to our modern gym facilities with trained staff on site.

Location

The position is located within the Department of Medicine, Solna. The department consists of ten divisions and each division consists of several research groups. The position is located within the research group of Xu Landén, part of the Division of Dermatology and Venereology. Within the Division of Dermatology and Venereology, we investigate the mechanisms underlying skin physiology and disease, with the aim of developing better treatments and advancing translational dermatology research.

The Xu Landén group studies the molecular and cellular programs that govern wound healing and tissue regeneration. A major focus is the role of regulatory RNAs in coordinating immune responses to skin injury and identifying mechanisms that may resolve chronic inflammation and restore repair. Our work aims to advance the understanding of wound biology and support the development of improved patient stratification and therapeutic strategies.

Current projects include:

(i) building single-cell and spatial maps of human acute and chronic wounds (e.g., PMID: 39729995);
(ii) defining the function of wound-related regulatory RNAs (e.g., PMIDs: 40279507, 39366968, 31019085); and
(iii) investigating how epigenetic memory influences wound repair (e.g., PMID: 39468077)

Type of scholarship

The amount is tax free and it is set for twelve months at a time, paid out on a six months basis. In exceptional cases, shorter periods may be acceptable.

Application process

An application must contain the following documents in English or Swedish:

• A complete curriculum vitae, including date of the thesis defence, title of the thesis, previous academic positions, academic title, current position, academic distinctions, and committee work
• A complete list of publications
• A summary of current work (no more than one page)

The application is to be submitted on the Varbi recruitment system.

Want to make a difference? Join us and contribute to better health for all

Salary: Scholarship
Reference number: STÖD 2-1261/2026