Research Scientist II

Job Description:

Department of Neuroscience & Center for Advanced Pain Studies

The University of Texas at Dallas

Position Summary

The Department of Neuroscience and the Center for Advanced Pain Studies at UT Dallas invite applications for a Research Scientist II to join the Price Lab. This position is designed for an experienced, highly motivated scientist who will play a key intellectual and technical role in advancing the lab's NIH-funded research program focused on the neurobiological mechanisms underlying chronic pain.

Responsibilities

• The Research Scientist II will lead and contribute to federally funded projects aimed at defining how neuronal plasticity alters nociceptive processing within the sensory and central nervous systems, and how these maladaptive changes drive the transition from acute to chronic pain.
• Particular emphasis will be placed on investigating the role of the voltage-gated sodium channel NaV1.7 as a critical regulator of sensory neuron excitability and pain signaling under both physiological and pathological conditions.
• This role will also help expand and shape ongoing laboratory efforts focused on identifying and characterizing novel molecular and cellular targets, including ion channel mechanisms and associated signaling pathways, that regulate sensory neuron excitability following injury.

Research Activities

• The successful candidate will design, execute, and interpret complex experiments in both preclinical models of pain and in vitro human sensory neuron systems, with a strong emphasis on patch-clamp electrophysiology, functional assays, and mechanistic studies of neuronal signaling.
• This position requires a high level of scientific independence, including responsibility for experimental strategy, troubleshooting, data analysis, and integration of findings across multiple approaches.

Scholarly & Mentoring Expectations

• Beyond hands-on research, the Research Scientist II will be expected to contribute to manuscript preparation, grant applications, and progress reports, and to present findings at lab meetings and scientific conferences.
• The individual will also play a mentoring role by providing technical guidance and scientific oversight to trainees, including graduate students and research staff, and may assist in coordinating collaborative projects within and outside the institution.
• This position offers the opportunity to take a leadership role in a dynamic, well-funded research environment, contributing directly to high-impact studies aimed at understanding and ultimately treating chronic pain.

This position is 100% grant funded. Continued employment is contingent on the availability of funds and satisfactory performance.