Post-doctoral Position in Computational Biology

Post-doctoral Position in Computational Biology

IEO - European Institute of Oncology

Milan, Italy

Our research aims to address the molecular mechanisms underlying the oncogenic action of the MYC transcription factor and to exploit them for pre-clinical development of targeted therapies. Through a combination of mechanism-driven hypotheses and high-throughput screens, we identified diverse synthetic-lethal interactions that allow selective killing of MYCdriven cancer cells by targeted genetic or pharmacological interventions. Essential mechanistic insight is provided by the alterations in mRNA expression and processing profiles elicited by combined MYC activation and drug treatment. In order to map these alterations, we use next-generation sequencing (NGS)-based genomic approaches, such as RNA-seq or ChIP-seq.

We seek to recruit an ambitious, motivated, team-oriented scientist with a PhD in computational biology, or related. The successful candidate will be involved in the computational analysis of NGS datasets produced in the laboratory, in close collaboration with experimental scientists in the group. He/she will benefit from a strong, integrative computational community in our institute. Special attention will be given to MYC and drug-induced alterations in gene expression at both the transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels (e.g. alternative splicing, degradation, translation) which ultimately impact protein production and cell fate.

Required skills:

Advanced proficiency in R for end-to-end RNA-seq analysis, including:

• Quality control, alignment/quantification, differential expression, and alternative splicing analyses;
• Expert data visualization skills using ggplot2;
• Strong experience with downstream functional interpretation, including pathway and gene-set enrichment analyses using multiple complementary methods;
• Proven ability to process large NGS datasets on Linux/HPC environments (e.g. SLURM) with efficient resource management;
• Intermediate competence with reproducible, containerized workflows (conda/mamba, Singularity/Apptainer, Docker);
• Working knowledge of workflow managers (e.g. Nextflow);
• Solid statistical foundations and rigorous coding practices;
• Familiarity with other NGS modalities (e.g. ChIP-seq) is a plus.