Interested in exploring the role of adipose tissues in mucosal inflammation in a supportive, creative, and inclusive environment? We are looking for a team-oriented, collaborative, proactive postdoc to play an active role in growing our research program. You would lead your own project and work with other lab members to make the most out of our samples from gnotobiotic models and human tissues.
The Grasset Lab
Our lab’s long-term objective is to uncover novel mechanisms underlying the pathology of Crohn’s disease (CD), a progressive incurable disease characterized by transmural intestinal inflammation leading to complications often requiring bowel resection surgery. The goal is to identify novel therapeutic targets by focusing on two previously disconnected hallmarks of CD: expanded mesenteric adipose tissue wrapping around the intestine – or creeping fat – and anti-microbial antibodies, both correlating with disease complications.
Studying these hallmarks will further reveal unexplored relationships between adipocytes, stromal cells and immune cells driving B cell responses in gut homeostasis and inflammation. Understanding these relationships will impact how we perceive immune responses at other mucosal sites and systemically.
Ongoing projects include: the study of the impact of CD-specific microbiota on stromal cell-supported lymphoid structures embedded in mesenteric adipose tissue; specific mechanisms by which stromal cells and adipocytes communicate with B cells; and the subsequent impact on B cell activation and their differentiation to anti-microbial antibody-producing plasma cells. Future projects will investigate how these relationships are established in early life and evolve over time.
The Position
We are looking for a team-oriented, collaborative, proactive postdoc to play an active role in growing our research program. You would lead your own project and work with other lab members to make the most out of our samples from gnotobiotic models and human tissues.
As the projects in the lab are interdisciplinary, research experience in any of the following areas is preferred and would be very valuable: adipocyte biology, lipid metabolism, adipose-derived stromal cells, stromal-immune crosstalk, immunology, and/or microbiology.
Experience in any combination of the following techniques is preferred and will be valuable: spectral flow cytometry, confocal imaging (whole mount imaging/clearing is a plus), single cell RNA seq analysis, B cell repertoire analysis, mass spectrometry, cell culture, anaerobic bacteria culture, mouse handling, and/or colony management.
Candidates should have a PhD, MD, or equivalent degree, and strong written and verbal communication skills are required.
Your career development matters and will be supported, including through presentations at seminars and conferences, as well as grant writing opportunities.
The Environment
The unique multidisciplinary and collaborative environment within the Gale and Ira Drukier Institute for Children’s Health, Department of Pediatrics, and Division of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, as well as the Jill Roberts Institute for Research in Inflammatory Bowel Disease, provides the ideal environment for driving projects in our lab!
You would join our lab on the Weill Cornell Medical College campus on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, at the heart of a research hub which includes Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and The Rockefeller University. This provides further collaboration and networking opportunities across multiple scientific disciplines.
To Apply
Send your CV, a cover letter describing your past and future research interests and motivations for applying, and the contact information of 3 references to Dr. Emilie Grasset at emg4011@med.cornell.edu
You may also reach out to discuss research and fit prior to the formal application.
Weill Cornell Medical College offers subsidized housing, excellent benefits, and will assist in fulfilling visa requirements.
PI Statement
I believe that the best way to foster a creative scientific environment is to reward teamwork while encouraging individuals to take on new challenges specific to their individual development and project needs. I will promote ongoing anti-bias and anti-racism training for lab members and a lab philosophy manual will clarify expectations and lab values of diversity and inclusion, including zero tolerance for harassment and discrimination.
About Weill Cornell Medicine
Weill Cornell Medicine is a comprehensive academic medical center that's committed to excellence in patient care, scientific discovery, and the education of future physicians in New York City and around the world. Our doctors and scientists-faculty from Weill Cornell Medical College, Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences, and the Weill Cornell Physician Organization-are engaged in world-class clinical care and cutting-edge research that connect patients to the latest treatment innovations and prevention strategies. Located in the heart of the Upper East Side's scientific corridor, Weill Cornell Medicine's powerful network of collaborators extends to its parent university Cornell University; to Qatar, where an international campus offers a U.S. medical degree; and to programs in Tanzania, Haiti, Brazil, Austria and Turkey. Our medical practices serve communities throughout New York City, and our faculty provide comprehensive care at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, NewYork-Presbyterian/Lower Manhattan Hospital, NewYork-Presbyterian/Queens, and NewYork-Presbyterian/Brooklyn Methodist Hospital. At Weill Cornell Medicine, we work together to treat each individual, not just their conditions or illnesses, as we strive to deliver the finest possible care for our patients - the center of everything we do. Weill Cornell Medicine is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. Weill Cornell Medicine provides equal employment opportunities to all qualified applicants without regard to race, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, color, age, religion, protected veteran or disability status, or genetic information.