Postdoctoral Fellow - Hematopoietic Biology & Malignancy

University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center; Houston (TX); On-site; USD 64,000 - 76,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical benefits

Dental benefits

Paid time off

Retirement plan

Tuition benefits

Educational opportunities

Recognition programs

Job summary

UT MD Anderson Cancer Center invites a Postdoctoral Fellow to join the Gu lab. The role focuses on cancer immunology and immune evasion, with a blend of experimental and computational work in a collaborative environment.

The fellow will pursue independent projects, leverage multi-omics and CRISPR screening, and work with core facilities to advance immunotherapy strategies, based in Houston, TX.

Qualifications

• PhD in Biology, Bioinformatics, Computer Science or related field with strong biomedical background.
• Proven publication record and excellent written/oral communication skills.
• Preference for immunology, CRISPR screening, animal models, or cancer genomics experience.

Responsibilities

• Lead independent research projects on cancer-associated immune evasion and drug resistance mechanisms.
• Develop understanding of T-cell mediated immunity and cancer immune evasion.
• Master multi-omics data integration including single-cell/spatial data, functional genomics, and CRISPR screening.

Skills

Immunology

Computational biology

CRISPR screening

Cancer genomics

Education

PhD in Biology

PhD in Bioinformatics

PhD in Computer Science

Tools

Single-cell sequencing

Spatial omics

Job description

The Shengqing (Stan) Gu lab at UT MD Anderson Cancer Center seeks a highly motivated Postdoctoral Fellow with a strong biomedical research background to join our team. The Gu laboratory is an interdisciplinary and highly collaborative team focused on understanding how dysregulation of cell-cell interactions shape tumor development and drive immune evasion - a key process underlying cancer progression and therapy resistance.

We are seeking a well-organized, highly motivated postdoctoral fellow with extensive experience in cancer immunology and/or computational biology. The fellow will work closely with local experimental and/or computational collaborators in seeking to enhance the efficacy of cancer immunotherapy, such as by modulating cancer antigen presentation or elucidating the evolution of immune evasion. In addition, the fellow will also benefit from collaborations with former colleagues of Dr. Gu at many institutes.

All duties and responsibilities are carried out in compliance with institutional policies, ethical research standards, and applicable federal and state regulations.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

• Advanced Research Design & Execution: Lead independent research projects dissecting cancer-associated immune evasion and drug resistance mechanisms in leukemia.
• Cancer Immunology Expertise: Develop a comprehensive understanding of T-cell-mediated immunity and cancer-associated immune evasion.
• Cutting-Edge Multi-omics & Genomics: Master the integration and analysis of complex datasets, including single cell/spatial multi-omics, functional genomics, and CRISPR screening.
• Computational Biology Expertise: Develop and/or use computation and AI tools to analyze experimental data and solve biomedical questions.
• Translational Therapeutics Development: Collaborate with comprehensive institutional core facilities to translate basic findings into novel targeted and immunotherapeutic strategies.
• Scientific Leadership & Communication: Lead the drafting of high-impact scientific manuscripts, present findings at multidisciplinary seminars, and collaborate with internal and external research partners.
• Career Independence: Execute a tailored career transition plan to develop the professional skills necessary for a successful move into an independent academic or industry position.

Dr. Gu is strongly committed to the professional fulfillment and career advancement of all trainees. He will work on creating a successful transition plan to academia or industry for the fellow in accordance with their evolving preferences. The fellow will have access to the rich research platforms at UT MD Anderson and more broadly the Texas Medical Center, including computation cluster, single-cell core facility, epigenetics core facility, flow cytometry facilities, drug screening core, animal colony, among many others.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Highly motivated individuals who have obtained or are about to obtain a PhD in Biology, Bioinformatics, Computer Science, or related areas are encouraged to apply. Proven track record of publications, excellent written and oral communication skills are required. Preferences will be given to those with research experience in immunology, CRISPR screening, animal models, or cancer genomics.

ADDITIONAL APPLICATION INFORMATION

Ongoing projects include: (1) Modulating cancer antigen presentation to potentiate immunotherapy; (2) Mapping the evolutionary trajectories of immune evasion in cancer development. To address these questions, we integrate various cutting-edge experimental and computational approaches in the areas of functional genomics, single cell/spatial multi-omics, cell biology, biochemistry, data mining, machine learning, and mathematical modeling, among others. This position offers an exceptional opportunity to conduct interdisciplinary research at the intersection of cancer biology, immunology, and computational biology within a highly collaborative environment. More research details can be found at: https://www.mdanderson.org/research/departments-labs-institutes/labs/gu-laboratory.html

Dr. Gu graduated from University of Toronto with a PhD in Medical Biophysics, did postdoctoral training at Harvard Medical School and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and joined MD Anderson Cancer Center as Assistant Professor in November 2022. He has excellent track record in highly collaborative and interdisciplinary research in cancer biology, immunology, and computational biology, as demonstrated by recent (co)first and corresponding author papers/preprints:

Cancer immunology: (Jiang, Gu, Pan et al., Nature Medicine, 2018; Gu, Wang, Hu et al., Genome Biology, 2020; Shi, Gu et al., Clinical Cancer Research, 2020; Gu, Zhang, Wang, Jiang et al., Cancer Discovery, 2021; Wang, Tokheim, Gu, Wang et al., Cell, 2021; Zeng, Gu et al., Cancer Immunology Research, 2022)

Computational biology: (Gu et al., PNAS, 2021; Zeng, Gu et al., Science Advances, 2022; Chen et al., bioRxiv, 2025)

Leukemia biology: (Gu, Chan, Mohi et al., Blood, 2016; Gu et al., Leukemia, 2018; Garber et al., bioRxiv, 2025)

POSITION INFORMATION

MD Anderson offers full-time postdoc positions with a salary ranging from $64,000 to $76,000 depending on the number of years of postgraduate experience. The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center offers excellent benefits, including medical, dental, paid time off, retirement, tuition benefits, educational opportunities, and individual and team recognition.

Offsite work arrangements are subject to approval and may be modified or revoked at any time based on business needs, performance considerations, or regulatory requirements.

This position may be responsible for maintaining the security and integrity of critical infrastructure, as defined in Section 113.001(2) of the Texas Business and Commerce Code and therefore may require routine reviews and screening. The ability to satisfy and maintain all requirements necessary to ensure the continued security and integrity of such infrastructure is a condition of hire and continued employment.

It is the policy of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center to provide equal employment opportunity without regard to race, color, religion, age, national origin, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, disability, protected veteran status, genetic information, or any other basis protected by institutional policy or by federal, state or local laws unless such distinction is required by law. http://www.mdanderson.org/about-us/legal-and-policy/legal-statements/eeo-affirmative-action.html