Two postdoctoral positions are available in the Department of Neurosurgery to study how endothelial signaling regulates cerebrovascular integrity under pathophysiological conditions such as intracranial aneurysm formation, growth and rupture. Intracranial aneurysm is a cerebrovascular disorder mainly affecting the arterial integrity in the brain. The rupture of an intracranial aneurysm causes subarachnoid hemorrhage, the most devastating form of stroke, and is responsible for high morbidity and mortality in patients.

The candidate will benefit from a multi-disciplinary training experience in a highly collaborative environment. The main approaches used in our lab include, but are not limited to, human genetics, mouse and zebrafish models, signaling mechanisms in primary cell culture system, advanced imaging modalities such as micro-CT and MRI. We have long-term collaborations with clinicians and successfully identified several aneurysm genes from patient samples by genetic approaches. Our lab recently developed multiple new animal models for studying the pathophysiology of intracranial aneurysms. We applied the CRISPR-CAS9 technique to human endothelial cells for loss-of-function analyses in signaling pathways. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to gain the combined training in both in vivo aneurysm models and in vitro biochemical techniques such as, quantitative RT-PCR, immunohistochemistry, carotid artery surgery, stereotaxic injection, minipump implantation, behavioral testing, among others. The current projects are continuous research from previous publications in Nature Cell Biology, Developmental Cell, Autophagy, EMBO Journal, PLoS Genetics, etc.

Houston is the fourth largest city in the United States and is characterized by its low cost of living in comparison to other major metropolitan areas. As the largest medical center in the world, the TMC has a robust scientific community that includes multiple institutions including Baylor College of Medicine, Methodist Research Institute, Texas A&M IBT, and the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center with whom we share a joint Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (GSBS).

Interested applicants should be highly motivated and have a Ph.D. or M.D. degree. A candidate will be preferred with extensive research experience on in vitro studies (such as signaling, cell culture, biochemistry, etc.) or in vivo ones (mouse models, vascular techniques, etc.). Prior publication in internationally recognized journals is required. To apply for this position, please send a curriculum vitae and contact information for three references in a single pdf file to: Zhen.Xu@uth.tmc.edu .