Computational Biology Postdoc Positions

Two Postdoctoral Positions are available at Virginia Tech and Children’s National Hospital

Dr. Shenglin Mei lab (https://shenglinmei.github.io/ ) at Fralin Biomedical Research Institute (FBRI) Cancer Research Center DC of Virginia Tech, and Children's National Center for Cancer and Immunology Research, is seeking highly motivated postdoctoral fellow and graduate students to join our team. The Mei Laboratory studies the remodeling and regulatory mechanisms of the tumor microenvironment during tumor progression and metastasis. The lab specializes in computational biology, and combines single-cell technologies, genomic datasets, machine learning, and experimental methods to investigate how the tumor microenvironment and gene regulatory factors control tumor metastasis cascade. By advancing our understanding of malignant cell heterogeneity and context-dependent tumor microenvironment remodeling, we aim to drive the development of novel therapeutic approaches for patients with metastatic cancer. The current focuses in lab include the following directions: 1) Developing computational methods for integrating multi-modal data, such as scRNA-seq, scATAC-seq, spatial transcriptomics, ChIP-seq, and CRISPR screening. 2) Investigating context-dependent remodeling of the tumor microenvironment. 3) Identifying novel regulators within the tumor microenvironment. 4) Exploring tumor organ specific metastasis with multi-omics data integration.

The candidate will develop novel statistical and machine learning methods for multi-omics data integration and apply the computational methods to explore the dysregulation and regulation of tumor microenvironment, malignant cell heterogeneity, plasticity, and tumor immunology.

Our lab is located in Children's National Research & Innovation Campus at Washington, D.C., and the positions offer a minimal annual salary of $65,000 and are adjustable based on research experience.

About PI:

Dr. Shenglin Mei is set to join the FBRI at Virginia Tech as tenure-track assistant professor in December 2024. 

Dr. Mei currently serves as an Instructor at the Center for Regenerative Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. He earned his Ph.D. at Tongji University and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute under the mentorship of Dr. Xiaole Shirley Liu, and completed his post-doc training in Department of Biomedical Informatics (DBMI) at Harvard Medical School with Dr. Peter Kharchenko , as well as at Massachusetts General Hospital with Dr. David Sykes. His research focuses on understanding tumor microenvironment remodeling and regulation through integrative genomics and experimental approaches. His lab will combine single cell technologies, genomic datasets, machine learning, and experimental approaches to address fundamental questions in tumor progression and metastasis cascade, with application to underly tumor microenvironment regulator, organ specific tumor metastasis, predict metastasis at early stage and develop novel therapeutic targets. Dr. Mei authored over 38 publications, including 14 papers where he is a first/co-first author or co-corresponding author, published in highly internationally recognized journals such as Cancer Cell, Nature Methods, Journal of Hepatology, Genome medicine et.al. He also received the Prostate Cancer Foundation Young Investigator Award.

Preferred qualifications:

• PhD and/or MD in computational biology, bioinformatics, genomics, biology, data science, computer science or other related fields.

• Experience in high-throughput sequencing data analysis, knowledge in supervised and unsupervised machine learning, or deep learning models.

• Strong programming skills in Python or R, and Linux Shell; experience in genomics data processing and open source repositories e.g. GitHub is a plus.

• Track record of first/co-first-author original research papers.

• Strong oral and written communication skills.

How to Apply:

Interested applicants should submit the following materials via email to Dr. Shenglin Mei (shenglinmei@vtc.vt.edu): 1) a cover letter describing current research activities and your interest in this position, 2) a current CV (including publications), and 3) contact information for three references.

About Virginia Tech and Children’s National Hospital

Virginia Tech, founded in 1872, is one of the top public universities in the United States. According to the latest US News university rankings, Virginia Tech ranks 47th overall for national universities and 20th among public universities, and have received high marks in engineering, computer science, architecture, and agriculture and biomedical science. 

Children’s National Hospital, based in Washington, D.C., has been serving the nation’s children since 1870. Children’s National is #6 overall, #1 for babies and ranked in every specialty evaluated by U.S. News & World Report for children’s hospital in the U.S. Children’s National is recognized for its expertise and innovation in pediatric care and as a strong voice for children through advocacy at the local, regional and national levels.

As the capital of United States, Washington DC is the hub of American politics and history. Washington DC metropolitan area (including Virginia and Maryland) is the home of people from diverse backgrounds, and is considered one of the best places to live and work in US.