Postdoctoral Associate - Developmental Programming of Metabolic Disease

University of Florida; Gainesville (FL); Hybrid; USD 59,000 - 64,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Retirement options

Paid time off

Professional development

Tuition assistance

PSLF eligible employer

Job summary

University of Florida is seeking a Postdoctoral Associate in Developmental Programming of Metabolic Disease on a NIH-funded project.

The successful candidate will explore how early-life bile acid signaling programs long-term metabolic health using mouse models and advanced cellular/molecular techniques, with opportunities to shape the project direction and contribute to high-impact publications.

Qualifications

• PhD, MD/PhD, or equivalent doctoral degree in a relevant biomedical discipline.
• Strong background in biomedical or biological sciences.
• Preferred applicants will have experience with molecular, cellular, or in vivo experimental approaches relevant to the project.

Responsibilities

• Investigate cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying developmental programming of metabolic disease.
• Utilize mouse models, flow cytometry, and cell sorting to study adipose tissue development.
• Apply lineage tracing, metabolic phenotyping, and single-cell genomic/epigenomic approaches to the project.

Skills

Biomedical sciences

Hypothesis-driven research

Molecular biology

In vivo approaches

Education

PhD or equivalent

Tools

Flow cytometry

Cell sorting

Lineage tracing

Metabolic phenotyping

Single-cell sequencing

Job description

Postdoctoral Associate - Developmental Programming of Metabolic Disease

Job no: 541500
Work type: Post Doc Associate
Location: Main Campus (Gainesville, FL)
Categories: Biology/Life Science
Department: 29060000 - MD-MOLECULAR GENTCS - MICROBIO

Classification Title:

Postdoctoral Associate

PhD, MD/PhD, or equivalent doctoral degree in a relevant biomedical discipline.

Job Description:

The Karst laboratory in the Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology at the University of Florida College of Medicine is seeking a highly motivated postdoctoral associate to join a newly funded NIH R01 project investigating how the early-life environment programs long-term metabolic health.

Our laboratory recently discovered that maternal bile acids delivered during lactation act as developmental signals that regulate neonatal growth through the bile acid receptor TGR5. Remarkably, transient manipulation of this pathway during lactation has lasting consequences: offspring exposed to reduced maternal milk bile acids are protected from diet-induced obesity, insulin resistance, hyperinsulinemia, and fatty liver in adulthood.

The successful candidate will investigate the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying this developmental programming. Current studies focus on how bile acid signaling during early postnatal life establishes adipose tissue architecture and function, including effects on adipocyte progenitor populations and their developmental trajectories. Approaches will include mouse models, flow cytometry and cell sorting, lineage tracing, metabolic phenotyping, and single-cell genomic and epigenomic approaches.

This is a new and rapidly developing research direction in the laboratory, providing substantial opportunity for the successful candidate to contribute intellectually to the project, develop independent questions, and shape its future direction.

We are looking for a scientist who is curious, rigorous, collaborative, and interested in understanding how transient exposures during critical developmental windows can produce lifelong changes in physiology and disease susceptibility.

$58,656 - $63,900 and is commensurate with qualifications and experience.

Required Qualifications:

PhD, MD/PhD, or equivalent doctoral degree in a relevant biomedical discipline.

Preferred:

Candidates should have a strong background in biomedical or biological sciences and demonstrated experience conducting rigorous, hypothesis-driven research. Preferred applicants will have experience with molecular, cellular, or in vivo experimental approaches relevant to the project.

A Criminal Background check is required, and this is not a remote work position. It is located on the University of Florida main campus in Gainesville, FL.

We Offer Exceptional Benefits:

• Low-cost State Health Plans: Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance
• Life and Disability Insurance
• Generous Retirement Options to secure your future
• Comprehensive Paid Time Off Packages: (includes over 10 paid holidays, as well as paid family, sick, and vacation leave)
• Exceptional Personal and Professional Development Opportunities: Access to UF Training & Organizational Development programs, leadership development, LinkedIn Learning, and more
• Tuition Assistance through the UF Employee Education Program
• Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Eligible Employer

To learn more about Gainesville and the surrounding areas, please visit the Guide to Greater Gainesville, which shares information about our neighborhoods, schools, zoning, culture, leisure, and more at https://guidetogreatergainesville.com/.

Gainesville is a vibrant city with a low cost of living, diverse population, excellent public schools, Division I NCAA sports, and no state income tax. The area is known for its nature parks, bike trails, sporting events, museums, mild winters, and warm summers. Being centrally located, Gainesville is easily situated for a day trip to beautiful beaches along the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico, as well as to theme parks like Disney World. Other nearby cities include Orlando, Jacksonville, and Tampa. Learn more about what Gainesville has to offer at https://www.visitgainesville.com/.

If an accommodation due to a disability is needed to apply for this position, please call 352-392-2477 or the Florida Relay System at 800-955-8771 (TDD). Hiring is contingent upon eligibility to work in the US. Searches are conducted in accordance with Florida's Sunshine Law.

Application must be submitted by 11:55 p.m. (EDT) of the posting end date.

Health Assessment Required:
Health Assessment Required: Yes

Advertised: 28 Sep 2026 Eastern Daylight Time
Applications close: 28 Oct 2026 Eastern Daylight Time

The University of Florida is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer.

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