"Research Associate - Tumor Immunology Postdoctoral Research Fellow"

A Research Associate position is available in Dr. Li Lily Wang’s laboratory, in the department of Translational Hematology Oncology Research (THOR), https://www.lerner.ccf.org/translational-hematology-oncology/wang/ in the Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH.

Immune checkpoint blockade has transformed cancer immunotherapy. The Wang laboratory was among the first to identify VISTA (V-domain Immunoglobulin Suppressor of T Cell Activation) as a promising immune checkpoint target for cancer therapy (1–5). Current multidisciplinary projects focus on the epigenetic and metabolic regulation of tumor-reactive T cells, CAR T cells, tumor-associated macrophages, and myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs). These studies integrate basic and clinical research, providing a strong training environment in translational cancer immunology.

We seek candidates with a recent PhD and with research experience in Biochemistry, Cell Biology, and Immunology to join our team. Interested candidates should submit CV, a statement of research interests in a cover letter, and three references to Dr. Li Lily Wang, wangl9@ccf.org.

References:

1. Le Mercier I, Chen W, Lines JL, Day M, Li J, Sergent P, Noelle RJ, Wang L (2014) VISTA regulates the development of protective anti-tumor immunity. Cancer Research, 74:1933-1944. PMC4116689
2. Xu W, Tạ MH, Malarkannan S, Wang L(2018) Review: The structure, expression, and function of immune-checkpoint protein VISTA as a critical regulator of anti-tumor immunity, autoimmunity, and inflammation. Cellular & Molecular Immunology. 2018 May 15(5):438-446 PMC6068175
3. Xu W, Dong J, Zheng Y, Zhou J, Yuan Y, Ta H, Miller H, Olson M, Rajasekaran K, Ernstoff M, Wang D, Malarkannan S, Wang L (2019) Immune checkpoint protein VISTA regulates antitumor immunity by controlling myeloid cell-mediated inflammation and immunosuppression. Cancer Immunology Research PubMed PMID:31340983; NIHMSID:NIHMS1535762
4. Zhang K, Zakeri A, Alban T, Dong J, Ta HM, Zalavadia AH, Branicky A, Zhao H, Juric I, Husich H, Parthasarathy PB, Rupani A, Drazba JA, Chakraborty AA, Ching-Cheng Huang S, Chan T, Avril S, Wang LL. VISTA promotes the metabolism and differentiation of myeloid-derived suppressor cells by STAT3 and polyamine-dependent mechanisms. Cell Reports 2024 Jan 3;43(1):113661. doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.113661. PMID: 38175754.
5. Hieu Minh Ta, Dia Roy, Keman Zhang, Tyler Alban, Ivan Juric, Juan Dong, Sachin Patnaik, Cassandra Gilmour, Amin Zakeri, Prerana B Parthasarathy, Amit Rupani, Yee Peng Phoon, Brian Gastman, Timothy Chan, Li Lily Wang. LRIG1 engages ligand VISTA and impairs tumor-specific CD8+ T cell responses. Science Immunology, 2024 May 17;9(95) PMID: 38758807 DOI: 10.1126/sciimmunol.adi7418