Postdoctoral Research Position-Announcement

A postdoc position is currently available in the Department of Pathology, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT.

The focus of the research is the regulation of gene expression in mammalian cells, and it's implications in health and disease. We are looking for a postdoctoral fellow with broad expertise in protein biochemistry, molecular biology, and mouse genetics. Proficiency in transcriptional regulation, immunology, or cancer biology is a plus, but is not required. Anyone interested in using mouse models, together with biochemical and cell culture techniques to answer gene regulation questions should apply.

Projects of ongoing interest include the study of the POU-domain factors Oct-1, Oct-2, and Oct-4, and the TFII-I class of transcription factors. We have recently found that Oct-1 acts as a stress sensor--Oct-1 deficient cells are sensitive to a variety of stress-inducing agents and mis-express a number of stress response genes. We are currently setting up purification systems to survey Oct-1 posttranslational modifications and the association of cofactors using MALD-TOF mass spectroscopy. We have also identified a genetic interaction between Oct-1 and the tumor suppressor protein p53 in mice, and we are currently conducting a large-scale study to generate more data. There are a number of Oct-1 binding sites in the immunoglobulin (Ig) heavy and kappa light chain loci, and immunological studies are planned to assess the role of Oct-1 in B cell development and function.

We have additionally identified TFII-I family proteins as potential regulators of Ig transcriptional activity. The ability of these proteins to respond to signals and regulated the expression of Ig and other genes in B cells in vivo is a developing area of interest in the lab.

Email inquiries to:

Dr. Dean Tantin

University of Utah--Pathology

EEJB-565, Room 5700B

15 No. Medical Dr. East

Salt Lake City, UT 84112-5650

Email: dean.tantin@path.utah.edu