Career Center

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is seeking a Postdoctoral Fellow for the Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry & Molecular Genetics within the New Jersey Medical School. Under the direction of the Dr.Nikhat Parveen, the Postdoctoral Fellow will have a Ph.D. or less than 2 years of postdoctoral experience preferably in the bacterial pathogenesis, bacterial genetics and physiology, or immunology. The projects involve study of the molecular basis of Lyme disease/syphilis and tick borne coinfections. Lyme disease is the most prevalent arthropod-borne, multisystemic illness in the USA. It affects skin, joints, heart and nervous system while tick-borne parasite, Babesia microti causes anemia and splenomegaly. Interestingly, C3H mice provide a very good animal model to study manifestations of Lyme disease as well as babesiosis. This has allowed us to investigate the impact of coinfections with these pathogens in this susceptible mouse model. Syphilis is a highly prevalent sexually transmitted disease all over the world. Syphilis-causing spirochete, Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum has several similarities with Lyme spirochetes; however, it cannot be grown in vitro easily. The new postdoctoral fellow will be expected to contribute to ongoing projects of Dr. Parveen funded by NIH.

Our department is located in a newer building, International Center for Public Health with excellent core facilities. The presence of Public Health Research Institute in the same building allows students and post-doctoral fellows to interact with some well-known experts in the field of microbial pathogenesis. The position is available for two years and is extendable depending on additional funds availability. Decision to renew the contract will be made annually based upon candidate's overall performance in the lab. Furthermore, postdoctoral fellows are encouraged to obtain independent fellowships after initial training. The candidates are usually advised and helped in the application process of the fellows by the Principal Investigator/Project leader.

Suitable applicants from the USA will be invited to present his/her work in the department. Salary rates and benefits will be according to the NIH guidelines. Interested candidates should submit a cover letter providing overall background, CV, and a list of at least three references by email to:

Parveeni@njms.rutgers.edu

Among the key duties of this position are the following;