Post Doctoral.Post Doctoral.Associate

The University of Pittsburgh is seeking a highly motivated Postdoctoral Associate to join the laboratory of Dr. Michael Telias in the Department of Ophthalmology. The successful candidate will conduct independent and collaborative research focused on retinal degeneration, integrating electrophysiological approaches with molecular, transcriptomic, and imaging techniques to examine neural dysfunction and circuit remodeling underlying retinal degeneration and identify potential therapeutic targets.

Duties and Responsibilities

1. Hands-on Experimental Research and Technical Expertise. The Postdoctoral Associate will lead and perform complex experimental workflows across multiple research projects, including:

· Work with transgenic and disease-model rodents, including genotyping, retinal dissection, tissue collection, and experimental design

· Perform intra-peritoneal and intra-ocular injections for pharmacological and genetic manipulation

· Conduct molecular biology experiments, including RNA/DNA purification, gel electrophoresis, cloning strategies, qPCR, and assay optimization

· Perform RNA-sequencing experiments and lead comprehensive downstream analyses (quality control, differential expression, pathway enrichment, and integration with functional data)

· Conduct confocal and two-photon microscopy, including image acquisition, analysis, and quantification

· Perform electrophysiology and neural recordings, including system setup, MEA recordings, and data analysis

· Conduct immunohistochemistry (IHC), including cardiac perfusion fixation, tissue embedding, sectioning, staining, imaging, and quantitative analysis

2. Independent Research, Data Analysis, and Scientific Writing. The Postdoctoral Associate will:

· Independently design research questions and experimental strategies

· Conduct in-depth literature review to guide hypothesis generation and experimental planning

· Lead RNA-seq data analysis, including interpretation, visualization, and biological contextualization

· Prepare manuscripts, figures, and presentations for peer-reviewed publications and scientific meetings

· Contribute to grant writing, fellowship applications, and progress reports

· Manage multiple projects simultaneously, ensuring timelines, milestones are met

3. Mentorship, Teaching, and Laboratory Leadership. The Postdoctoral Associate will play a key role in training and mentoring lab members by:

· Supervising and guiding graduate students, undergraduate students, and research technicians

· Providing hands-on training and consultation in molecular biology techniques, cloning strategies, IHC, imaging, and experimental troubleshooting

· Advising colleagues on experimental design, data analysis, and interpretation.

· Supporting a collaborative and inclusive laboratory environment

· Presenting research findings at national and international conferences and workshops

Expectations and Qualifications

· PhD in Neuroscience, Biology, Biomedical Sciences, or a related field

· Strong record of independent research productivity

· Demonstrated ability to analyze complex datasets

· Experience writing and publishing peer-reviewed scientific manuscripts

· Ability to work independently and collaboratively in multidisciplinary teams

· Excellent organizational, communication, and time-management skills

· Comfortable supervising and mentoring junior researchers

Opportunities Available

· Strong mentorship and career development

· Support for travel to national and international scientific conferences

· Professional development workshops

· Opportunities for first-author publications, grant writing, and fellowship applications