Location: | London |
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Salary: | £43,093 to £50,834 per annum |
Hours: | Full Time |
Contract Type: | Fixed-Term/Contract |
Placed On: | 27th January 2023 |
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Closes: | 22nd February 2023 |
Job Ref: | MED03642 |
Location: South Kensington Campus
Job Summary
Applications are invited for a Medical Research Council-funded post-doctoral research position to work on the project “Oncogenic signalling crosstalk with intracellular trafficking underpinning early metastatic events” in the Laboratory of Dr Vania Braga.
The project will expand our exciting model published here to investigate the perturbation of cell-cell contacts by oncogenic signalling leading to cell detachment from solid tumours and metastasis (see Erasmus et al., J Cell Biol., (2021) 220 (6): e202002114; doi: 10.1083/jcb.202002114). Increased levels of the small GTPase Rac1 in vivo have been reported in breast, colon and head and neck cancers, and high levels of activating mutations detected in melanoma and head and neck cancers. Such abnormal Rac1 activation promotes malignancy as it correlates with increased invasion and metastatic potential in tumour cell lines.
The project will investigate the molecular mechanisms via which inappropriate Rac1activation triggers cell-cell contact disruption, one of the early signs of tumour de-differentiation and metastasis. More specifically, the project aims to dissect the cross-talk between Rac1 signalling pathways that modulate intracellular trafficking of E-cadherin, the main cell-cell adhesion receptor of epithelial cells. The project will address fundamental questions on (i) how signalling is locally and temporally regulated by oncogenes and (ii) which trafficking routes are selectively modulated to influence the rate of delivery, internalization and turnover of adhesion receptors.
The project will provide an exceptional interdisciplinary training for the appointed person. It will use a variety of techniques in biochemistry and molecular cell biology, including RNAi screen, protein-protein interactions, GTPase signalling and adhesion assays, microscopy (wide-field, confocal/TIRF and super-resolution), live imaging, FRET/FLIM and quantitative image analysis. In collaboration with Dr Sam Au (Bioengineering Department, Imperial College), microchannel devices will be developed to investigate tumour cell behaviour.
Duties and responsibilities
Essential requirements
Further Information
This is a full time and fixed term post for 3 years. You will be based at the Hammersmith Campus (East Acton).
Should you require any further details on the role please contact: Vania Braga (v.braga@imperial.ac.uk).
Candidates who have not yet been officially awarded their PhD will be appointed as a Research Assistant within the salary range £38,194 - £41,388 per annum.
Closing Date: 22 Feb 23
To apply, visit www.imperial.ac.uk/jobs and search by the job reference MED03642.
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