Assistant Professor, Pharmacology

The University of Arizona•Tucson, AZ

7d•Onsite

About The Position

The Department of Pharmacology at the University of Arizona invites applications for a tenure-eligible Assistant Professor position in translational sensory neurobiology. The department seeks a candidate studying how peripheral sensory neurons initiate and sustain pain and itch, with a research program that works directly in human sensory neurons alongside preclinical models. This recruitment will extend the department’s strengths in pain and analgesic pharmacology through human tissue-based target identification and validation. The successful candidate will contribute to the Comprehensive Center for Addiction and Pain and train graduate students in the department’s PhD program in Medical Pharmacology. The role includes developing an independent research program, pursuing extramural funding, and contributing to undergraduate, graduate, and medical education. Visa sponsorship is available. This is a full-time, tenure-eligible faculty position at 1.0 FTE, with a 40-hour workweek. Compensation is salary, dependent on experience (DOE). The position is benefits-eligible, with full benefits.

Requirements

PhD, MD, or MD/PhD in pharmacology, neuroscience, physiology, or a closely related discipline.
Postdoctoral training in somatosensory neurobiology and a record of first-author publications in peer-reviewed journals.
Demonstrated expertise in patch-clamp electrophysiology of primary afferent neurons, including recordings from human dorsal root ganglion neurons.
Demonstrated expertise in multiphoton calcium imaging of sensory neurons.
An active individual peer-reviewed NIH career development award as principal investigator, held at the time of appointment.
A research program addressing sex differences in pain mechanisms, evidenced by first-author peer-reviewed publications.

Nice To Haves

For Early Career Assistant Professor rank, current peer-reviewed funding (K99, K22, or equivalent).
Experience integrating pharmacological screening with multiphoton calcium imaging in an ex vivo skin–nerve preparation for comprehensive phenotyping of functionally identified sensory neuron populations.
A research program spanning both pain and itch modalities.
Expertise in neurohormonal signaling as a driver of nociceptor sensitization and pain amplification.
Experience with voltage-gated sodium channel physiology and pharmacology across multiple pain states, including traumatic nerve injury and chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy.
Funding aligned with the NIH HEAL Initiative or comparable federal priorities in non-opioid analgesic discovery.
Experience with rodent models of post-surgical pain.

Responsibilities

Seek extramural research funding by developing and submitting grant proposals to appropriate funding agencies.
As Principal Investigator, partner with faculty to form research teams, develop research plans, write funding proposals, and implement and disseminate results through peer-reviewed publications, conference presentations, and invited lectures.
Develop an independent research program.
Contribute to graduate (PhD) and medical (MD) education.
Engage in teaching activities for undergraduate and graduate students.
Participate in appropriate departmental and/or College of Medicine committees and professional organization committees.
Perform additional duties as assigned.