University of Helsinki Postdoctoral Fellowships

 1. Postdoctoral Researcher/University Researcher in environmental radiochemistry

Due Date:  15.7.2022

Unit:  Faculty of Science

Sub-unit:  Department of Chemistry

ID:  387

Description

We seek to recruit a post-doctoral researcher / university researcher to develop knowledge on naturally occurring radionuclide (NOR) biogeochemistry and fractionation during mine bio-heap leaching. The work is part of the EU RadoNorm project. The project will be completed at the University of Helsinki in collaboration with scientists from the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority of Finland (STUK).

During bio-heap leaching, metal-rich ore is crushed, agglomerated, and put into bioleaching stacks. The stacks are kept aerated and are constantly irrigated through recirculation of acidic production solutions. Indigenous chemoautotrophic bacteria leach metals from the ore under these conditions. The metals are then recovered from the leachates for further processing. The impact of bioleaching and refining processes on NORs is largely unknown. As bioleaching may become more important in the growing green economy, it is important to address the knowledge caveat on NORs. Information on NOR behavior can be used to better inform material / waste management from bio-heap leaching and environmental impact.

The project researcher will be based in Helsinki, and they undertake controlled laboratory studies that replicate common bioleaching approaches that are used on metal rich ores. NOR fractionation, NOR biogeochemistry, and the microbial ecology of the system, will be tracked during the bioleaching process. NOR chemistry and long-term stability will also be examined in waste products.

The project PI is Prof. Gareth Law (University of Helsinki). The lead STUK collaborator is Dr Antti Kallio. The position provides multiple opportunities for collaboration across the project partners and the wider RadoNorm consortium.

The position is full-time and is funded for up to three years. The starting date should be in August 2022.

Salary and benefits

For a post-doctoral researcher / university researcher, the starting salary is 3500 - 4000 euros/month, depending on previous qualifications and experience.

The University of Helsinki offers comprehensive services to its employees, including occupational health care and health insurance, sports facilities, and opportunities for professional development. The University provides support for internationally recruited employees with their transition to work and life in Finland. For more on the University of Helsinki as an employer, please see https://www.helsinki.fi/en/about-us/careers.

Requirements

The applicant should hold a relevant PhD in Radiochemistry, Chemistry, Geochemistry, or an aligned subject. Applicants should have experience of working with complex environmental samples or nuclear industry samples and have experience of working in a wet chemistry laboratory. Filed work experience is beneficial. Experience / knowledge of working with radioactivity, radioisotope separation techniques, radiometric methods, geochemical modelling programmes, and speciation techniques are considered a major plus. An interest in radiochemistry pedagogy is essential. Post-doctoral researchers are expected to develop a teaching portfolio and further their teaching skills at the University of Helsinki. The working language of the laboratory and the RadoNorm project is English and therefore good communication skills in English are essential. Knowledge of Finnish or Swedish is considered beneficial.

How to apply

Please submit as a single pdf file:

• Application letter describing motivation, background, and research interests

• CV

• Contact details of two potential referees who have already agreed to provide letters of recommendation

• List of publications (and a link to your Google Scholar profile)

Please submit your application using the University of Helsinki Recruitment System.

The deadline for submitting the application is July 15, 2022. Short-listed applicants will be invited to an interview (likely online) soon after.

The University of Helsinki welcomes applicants from a variety of gender identities, and linguistic and cultural backgrounds.

Additional information

For more information on the position, please contact Gareth Law (gareth.law@helsinki.fi).

The University of Helsinki is an international scientific community of 40,000 students and researchers. It is one of the leading multidisciplinary research universities in Europe and ranks among the top 100 international universities in the world.

The Department of Chemistry, which is part of the Faculty of Science, is the leading Chemistry research and teaching unit in Finland. The research themes of the Department cover all aspects of Chemistry research, including radiochemistry and environmental chemistry. The Department’s Radiochemistry Unit is Finland’s leading university-based radiochemistry research and teaching laboratory. The successful candidate will join a vibrant laboratory that is home to approx. 40 researchers. The laboratory is one of two laboratories in Europe to offer the EuChemS accredited Euromaster in Radiochemistry.

The Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority of Finland (STUK) is a regulatory control authority of radiation and nuclear safety in Finland. The purpose is to protect people, society, the environment and future generations from the harmful effects of radiation. STUK participates in research and has laboratories for radioactivity determinations and calibration services. The national measurement standards of ionising radiation are maintained by STUK.

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2, Post-Doctoral Researcher in transcriptomics of plant programmed cell death

Due Date:  26.8.2022

Unit:  Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences

Sub-unit:  Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Progr

ID:  386

Description

The University of Helsinki, founded in 1640, is one of the world’s leading universities for multidisciplinary research. The university has an international academic community of 40,000 students and staff members. The University of Helsinki offers comprehensive services to its employees, including occupational health care and health insurance, sports facilities, and opportunities for professional development. The International Staff Services office assists employees from abroad with their transition to work and life in Finland.

 

The Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme (OEB) of the Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences comprises roughly 40 research groups which employ 40 principal investigators and 120 researchers. The research programme is situated in the Viikki science park.

 

The Organismal and Evolutionary Research Programme invites applications for a

 

POST-DOCTORAL RESEARCHER

 

in transcriptomics of plant programmed cell death  for a fixed term of two years in the research group of Dr. Mikael Brosché. The earliest starting date is 1.9.2022. There will be a trial period of six months in the beginning.

 

A post-doctoral position is available at the University of Helsinki, Finland as a part of a recently funded Academy of Finland project “The role of cell specific signaling in plant defense and cell death”.

In this project, we will develop methods to define the transcriptome at cell death lesions induced by treatments with air pollutant ozone. Further, new regulators of plant programmed cell death and plant defense to ozone pollution will be identified. We have previously generated extensive genetic resources and RNAseq data to understand plant global response to ozone, and in this project these will aid development of cell specific assays.  See our recent publications:

 

Xu et al., 2022 https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2022.883002/abstract

Morales et al., 2021 https://doi.org/10.1093/plphys/kiab097

Vuorinen et al., 2021 https://doi.org/10.1094/MPMI-07-20-0202-R

 

A successful applicant will likely have a strong background in plant molecular biology, genetics or stress biology, and familiarity with analysis of RNAseq data. Applicants to the position shall hold a doctoral degree and have the ability to conduct independent scholarly work.

 

Informal inquiries can be directed to Dr. Mikael Brosché (mikael.brosche@helsinki.fi).

 

Formal applications should include as a single pdf file:

a CV including a list of publications

a max. 2 page letter of motivation

contact information of two persons who can provide a reference letter based on request 

 

The salary will be based on level 5 of the demands level chart for teaching and research personnel in the salary system of Finnish universities. In addition, the appointee will be paid a salary component based on personal performance with the overall starting salary amounting to c. 3600 EUR per month, depending on the previous relevant research experience of the candidate.

 

Please submit your application using the University of Helsinki Recruitment System via the Apply link. Applicants who are employees of the University of Helsinki are requested to leave their application via the SAP HR portal. The deadline for submitting the application is 26th August 2022.

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3. Post-doctoral researcher position in stem cell biology

Due Date:  8.7.2022

Unit:  Helsinki Institute of Life Science

Sub-unit:  Institute of Biotechnology

ID:  166

Post-doctoral researcher positions in stem cell biology

The HiLIFE - Institute of Biotechnology (BI), located in the Viikki science park, is a research institute at University of Helsinki. The institute harbors ~35 research groups and 250 researchers, and it operates at the highest international level. For more information on the Institute, please visit https://www.helsinki.fi/en/hilife-institute-of-biotechnology.

The laboratory of Dr. Jette Lengefeld is inviting applications for post-doctoral researchers in cell biology and stem cell biology.

The failure to regenerate tissue with age is a major health issue. A contributor to this decline is the loss of stem cell function. Despite the essential role of stem cells, it is still unclear how they fail to maintain their functions during ageing and disease. We discovered a new aspect of stem cell ageing in vivo: cellular enlargement. With age and damage, stem cells increase in size causing their functional decline. However, we are only beginning to understand how size impacts stem cell fitness and the physiological importance of this process remains unsolved.

The Lengefeld research group uses blood (hematopoietic) stem cells from mice and human bone marrow donations to address these fascinating questions:

What pathways cause stem cell dysfunction during their enlargement?

We use blood (hematopoietic) stem cells of mouse models to identify the molecular mechanisms impairing fitness of large stem cells from a metabolic perspective.

Can we rejuvenate stem cells after aging and damage?

We explore approaches to rejuvenate stem cells and investigate the effects on cellular ageing and organismal health.

Does deregulation of size lead to cancer?

We utilize blood stem cells from mice and humans to identify factors that facilitate leukaemia in vivo and to investigate the underlying mechanisms.

 

The post-doctoral applicant should hold PhD in cell biology, stem cell biology, cancer biology or a related field. Strong expertise in stem cell biology and experience working with mice is highly beneficial. The position will provide multiple opportunities for collaborations with potential lab visits abroad. An attitude to drive own research and work in an intra and inter team fashion is highly appreciated. In return, the candidates are offered an access to a wide variety of methodologies and advanced techniques. The working language of the laboratory, the BI and HiLIFE is English and good communication skills in English are required.

The postdoctoral researcher position is initially limited to 2 years, with a possibility of extension. A trial period of 6 months will be applied, and the salaries will be based on the University salary scheme for teaching and research personnel composed of both task specific and personal performance components.

Application should include the following documents as a single pdf file: CV, list of publications, motivation letter including a description of your research interests, and the names and telephone numbers of at least two referees.

Please submit your application, together with the required attachments, through the University of Helsinki electronic recruitment system by clicking the “Apply for the position” - link below. 

The deadline for the applications is 8th of July 2022, but the positions will be filled immediately once suitable candidates have been identified.

For informal inquiries, contact ‘jette.lengefeld(at)helsinki.fi’, and for more information about our research, please visit http://lengefeldlab.com

For technical support regarding the recruitment system, please contact rekrytointi@helsinki.fi.

Selected recent publications:

Lengefeld J, Cheng CW, Maretich P, Blair M, Hagen H, McReynolds MR, Sullivan E, Mayors K, Roberts C, Steiner J, Kang JH, Miettinen TP, Manalis SR, Antebi A, Rabinowitz JD, Morrison S, Lees J, Boyer L, Yilmaz O, Amon A “Cell size determines stem cell potential during aging“, Science Advances (2021),

Neurohr G, Terry R, Lengefeld J, Bonney M, Brittingham G, Moretto F, Miettinen T, Pontano Vaites L, Soares L, Paulo J, Harper W, Buratowski S, Manalis S, van Werven F, Holt L, Novak B, Tyson J, Amon A “Excessive cell growth causes cytoplasm dilution and contributes to senescence“, Cell (2019)

Finland is a member of the EU, has high quality free schooling (also in English), generous family benefits and healthcare, and was recently ranked as the best country in the world for expat families and in the world’s top ten most liveable cities. Finland and the Helsinki region possess top expertise in sciences in terms of a vibrant talent pool, leading research, strong support services and functioning collaboration networks. For more information about working at the University of Helsinki and living in Finland, please see helsinki.fi/en/university/working-at-the-university.

Helsinki Institute of Life Science (HiLIFE) is a new institute established in 2017 that supports high quality life science research across the University campuses and faculties. HiLIFE builds on existing strengths and new recruits and partnerships to create an attractive international environment for researchers to solve grand challenges in health, food, and environment. HiLIFE coordinates research infrastructures in life sciences and provides research-based interdisciplinary training.

The University of Helsinki, founded in 1640, is one of the world’s leading universities for multidisciplinary research. The university has an international academic community of 40,000 students and staff members. The University of Helsinki offers comprehensive services to its employees, including occupational health care and health insurance, sports facilities, and professional development opportunities. The International Staff Services office assists employees from abroad with their transition to work and life in Finland.

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4. Postdoctoral Researcher / Doctoral Researcher in the Functional Cancer Genomics group

Due Date:  25.07.2022

Unit:  Faculty of Medicine

Sub-unit:  Research Programs Unit

ID:  316

The Functional Cancer Genomics group led by Dr. Sakari Vanharanta at the Translational Cancer Medicine Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Finland, invites applications for the position of

POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCHER / DOCTORAL RESEARCHER

The goal of our research is to understand how cancers develop and spread, and how this knowledge could be used for the development of new approaches for therapy. We study how cancer mutations activate oncogenic programs and how these programs lead to cancer progression and metastasis. Specifically, our aims are to understand (i) how normal transcriptional programs are co-opted for carcinogenesis, (ii) how these programs interact with genetically activated oncogenic pathways, (iii) what the critical pro-tumorigenic mechanisms of cancer mutations are, and (iv) whether cancer-specific cellular programs lead to molecular vulnerabilities that could be exploited for cancer therapy and patient benefit. Our research combines experimental cancer models and human cancer data sets with state-of-the-art genomics (e.g. chromatin and transcriptional profiling), mechanistic analysis using various methods of genetic perturbation, and unbiased functional genetic screens (e.g. CRISPR/Cas9 screens), as demonstrated by our recent work (Patel et al. Nature 2022).

The Functional Cancer Genomics group consists of biomedical scientists with diverse backgrounds and expertise. We have strong international connections and work in a collaborative manner towards shared goals. After eight years at the University of Cambridge, the team has recently moved to Helsinki, and is located at Biomedicum Helsinki within the Academic Medical Center Helsinki, which provides a multidisciplinary research environment for basic and translational research with state-of-the-art facilities, cutting-edge technologies and synergistic expertise of several research groups.

We are looking for highly motivated biomedical scientists with a strong background in molecular and cell biology, biochemistry, functional genomics, cancer biology, genetics, computational biology, bioinformatics, or other related disciplines. At the postdoctoral level a successful candidate should have a PhD degree in an appropriate biological subject and a demonstrated track record of peer-reviewed publications. At the pre-doctoral level, previous experience in biomedical research or bioinformatics is considered an advantage.

Candidates should be able to demonstrate abstract thinking as well as potential to develop and pursue scientific projects in the field of cancer biology. Excellent communication skills in English and organizational abilities are expected. The position is available as soon as the selected candidates are available. The project allows initially a three-year fixed-term position. Salary will be commensurate with qualifications and experience based on the University guidelines.

Please submit your application as a single PDF file through the University’s electronic recruitment system. If you need technical support with the recruitment system, please contact recruitment@helsinki.fi.

The deadline for applications is 25 July 2022.

Please attach the following documents to your application as a single PDF file:

•    Cover letter that details your past experience and motivation for applying for the post

•    CV (including publications)

•    Contact details of at least three referees

For more information on the positions and specific projects, please contact Dr. Sakari Vanharanta, sakari.vanharanta@helsinki.fi.

More information on the Translational Cancer Medicine Program can be found here.

For additional information about the application process, please contact the HR team at hr-ltdk (at) helsinki.fi.

Relevant publications:

Patel et al. The renal lineage factor PAX8 controls oncogenic signalling in kidney cancer. Nature (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-04809-8

Patel et al. Genomic control of metastasis. Br J Cancer. (2021) Jan;124(1):3-12.

Rodrigues et al. NF-kappaB-dependent lymphoid enhancer co-option promotes renal carcinoma metastasis. Cancer Discov. (2018), Jul;8(7):850-865

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5. Postdoctoral Researcher in Cognitive Modeling in Extended Reality (XR)

Due Date:  30.06.2022

Unit:  Faculty of Science

Sub-unit:  Department of Computer Science

ID:  300

Position description

We are seeking a post-doctoral researcher to develop the next generation of exploratory data analysis tools with eXtended Reality (XR) interfaces. The project will use offline reinforcement learning and cognitive modelling (e.g. visual attention, decision-making, etc.) to understand and assist users performing XR scene manipulation tasks. Reinforcement learning requires substantial user feedback, which is even more challenging in XR settings, where headsets generate massive quantities of data that needs to be processed in real-time (high-definition stereoscopic video, eye-tracking and hand-tracking). We, therefore, want to develop a simulation-based AI approach to model how users perceive the environment presented to them by the headset and provide users with a personalised and contextualised experience.

The project PI will be Prof. Dorota Glowacka, (University of Helsinki, https://glowacka.org/). The research will be conducted in collaboration with Prof. Xiang Su (University of Oulu and NTU Norway, https://www.ntnu.edu/employees/xiang.su), Prof. Steven LaValle (University of Oulu, http://lavalle.pl/), and Prof. Anind K. Dey (University of Washington, https://ischool.uw.edu/people/faculty/profile/anind). The position provides multiple opportunities for collaboration, including a lab visit to the University of Washington.

The position is full-time and funded for two years in the first instance. The starting date is 1 August 2022 but an earlier or later date can be negotiated.

Salary and benefits

For a post-doctoral researcher, the starting salary is 3500 - 4000 euros/month, depending on previous qualifications and experience.  

The University of Helsinki offers comprehensive services to its employees, including occupational health care and health insurance, sports facilities, and opportunities for professional development. The University provides support for internationally recruited employees with their transition to work and life in Finland. For more on the University of Helsinki as an employer, please see https://www.helsinki.fi/en/about-us/careers.

Requirements

The post-doctoral applicant should hold a relevant PhD in Computer Science (e.g. Human-Computer Interaction, Games, XR, VR, etc.) or have demonstrated relevant experience in XR/VR from another discipline or in industry. Applicants should have experience developing applications and experiments for XR (preferably using the Unity game engine) and published research in the field. Knowledge of reinforcement learning, cognitive modelling and experience conducting user studies is considered a major plus. The working language is English and therefore good communication skills in English are essential.

How to apply

Please submit as a single pdf file:

• Application letter describing motivation and research interests

• CV

• Contact details of two potential referees who agreed to provide letters of recommendation

• List of publications (and a link to your Google Scholar profile)

Please submit your application using the University of Helsinki Recruitment System.

The deadline for submitting the application is June 30, 2022.

The University of Helsinki welcomes applicants from a variety of gender identities, and linguistic and cultural backgrounds.

Additional information

For more information on the position, please contact the leader of the group Dorota Glowacka (dorota.glowacka@helsinki.fi).

The University of Helsinki is an international scientific community of 40,000 students and researchers. It is one of the leading multidisciplinary research universities in Europe and ranks among the top 100 international universities in the world.

The Department of Computer Science, which is part of the Faculty of Science, is a leading Computer Science research and teaching unit in Finland. The research themes of the Department cover machine learning and algorithms, computer networks and distributed systems, software systems and bioinformatics.

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6. Postdoctoral Researcher for in-silico drug repurposing

Due Date:  30.6.2022

Unit:  Helsinki Institute of Life Science

Sub-unit:  Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM)

ID:  295

FIMM is currently seeking outstanding candidates for the position of

Postdoctoral Researcher for in-silico drug repurposing

Description: The Computational Systems Medicine research group led by Tero Aittokallio focuses on developing and applying integrated computational-experimental approaches to tackle biomedical questions, such as how genes function as interaction networks to carry out and regulate cellular processes, how perturbations in these networks contribute to complex traits, such as human diseases, and where and how in the disease network one should target to optimally inhibit disease phenotypes, such as tumour growth or metastasis.

The group is now seeking a motivated postdoctoral researcher, with strong computational and analytical skills, and an interest in implementing and applying machine learning and network-based approaches for AI-based drug repurposing and drug combination predictions, through analysing and integrating multi-omics data from pre-clinical and clinical resources. We will make use of publicly available resources for drug repurposing, such as Drug Repurposing Hub and clue.io, as well as our own drug testing data from pre-clinical models.

The postdoc will be working in a multi-disciplinary environment at the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM), University of Helsinki and HiLIFE, which form one of the leading life science research institutes in the Nordics. The postdoc will also take part and receive support from a multi-centre consortium, REMEDI4ALL, a European-level eco-system that facilitates fast and cost-effective patient-centric implementation of repurposed medicines, meeting unmet medical needs in any disease area, but with specific focus on cancer.

Qualification and experience:  A successful candidate holds a doctoral degree in a suitable field (computer science, computational biology, bioinformatics, or other relevant field), excellent computational and programming skills, a solid publication track record and a strong background in machine learning, network analysis, and analysis of multi-omics datasets. The candidate should be fluent in English and have good scientific writing and project reporting skills. Previous experience in drug repurposing is considered an advantage

What can we offer?

An international and dynamic working environment

Access to unique and high-quality data resources

Flexible working hours and experienced supervision

Possibility to travel and collaborate in the EU project

Career mentoring as part of FIMMPOD programme

 

Salary & contract: Initially a two year contract is available for the position, starting September 1, 2022, with a possibility for extension pending successful review. The salary will be in commensurate with qualifications based on the university salary system depending on the credentials, previous experience and performance of the postdoctoral researcher. Normal starting salary is 3500-4200 euros. There will be a trial period of 6 months.

How to apply: Application deadline is June 30, 2022. Applications are submitted via the University of Helsinki e-recruitment system by completing the application form and submitting a motivation letter, CV and a summary of previous research experience as a single PDF file (max 6 pages) in English.

For further information of the position, please contact Tero Aittokallio.

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For Detail please visit the official site