Position Overview: The lab of Dr. Dongjun Chung at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, Pelotonia Institute for Immuno-Oncology (PIIO) is seeking a highly motivated and talented Postdoctoral Scholar to develop and implement statistical frameworks for spatial omics experimental design, particularly focusing on optimizing sequencing depth, Field-of-View (FoV) selection, and other key experimental parameters. Recent advancements in high-throughput spatial omics technologies enable the simultaneous measurement of gene or protein expressions at close-to-cell-level resolution along with their spatial organization within tissues. Despite the availability of computational tools, a robust statistical framework for designing spatial omics experiments is lacking. This project aims to fill that gap by developing a power analysis framework to guide experimental design across various spatial omics technologies, such as sequencing-based methods (e.g., 10X Genomics Visium) and imaging-based methods (e.g., seqFISH+, MERFISH, CODEX).

Key Responsibilities:

• Develop rigorous statistical models for spatial omics data analysis, focusing on multi-sample and longitudinal experiments.

• Implement power analysis frameworks for sequencing-based and imaging-based spatial transcriptomics and proteomics experiments.

• Analyze and integrate high-dimensional spatial omics datasets from public and in-house sources.

• Collaborate with interdisciplinary teams, including experts in bioinformatics, spatial statistics, pulmonary science, and technology development.

• Prepare and present research findings at scientific meetings and publish in peer-reviewed journals.

Required Qualifications:

• Ph.D. in Statistics, Bioinformatics, Computational Biology, or a related field.

• Requires successful completion of a background check; selected candidate may be requested to completed a pre-employment physical including a drug screen

• Strong background in statistical modeling, particularly in high-dimensional data analysis.

• Experience with spatial omics, single-cell RNA sequencing, or high-throughput sequencing technologies.

• Proficiency in R, Python, or other programming languages for statistical computing.

• Demonstrated ability to work independently and in collaborative research environments.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience with spatial statistics or bioinformatics tool development.

• Familiarity with power analysis methods and statistical frameworks for experimental design.

• Background in biomedical research, particularly in lung biology or fibrosis, is a plus.

The Ohio State University is a dynamic community of diverse resources, where opportunity thrives and where individuals transform themselves and the world. The Ohio State University is one of the nations largest and most comprehensive public universities and a top employer in Ohio.

As one of only 54 designated comprehensive cancer centers in the nation, The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute is dedicated to the creation of knowledge in laboratory, clinical and population-based cancer research. We apply those discoveries to develop more effective approaches to cancer prevention, diagnosis, and therapies providing tomorrows standard of care today. A Cancer-Free World Begins Here.

The OSUCCC James is the only cancer program in the United States that features a National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated comprehensive cancer center aligned with a nationally ranked academic medical center and a freestanding cancer hospital on the campus of one of the nations largest public universities.

The PIIO (Learn more about PIIO) is a comprehensive bench-to-bedside research initiative focused on harnessing the bodys immune system to fight cancer at all levels from prevention to treatment and survivorship. With more than 100 investigators, the overall ambition of the PIIO is to be a leader in driving immuno-oncology (IO) breakthroughs in systems immuno-oncology, immunogenomics, cell therapy, and translational immuno-oncology.

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About The Ohio State University

The Ohio State University is a dynamic community of diverse resources, where opportunity thrives and where individuals transform themselves and the world. Founded in 1870, Ohio State is a world-class public research university and the leading comprehensive teaching and research institution in the state of Ohio. With more than 63,000 students (including 57,000 in Columbus), the Wexner Medical Center, 14 colleges, 80 centers and 175 majors, the university offers its students tremendous breadth and depth of opportunity in the liberal arts, the sciences and the professions.

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