Postdoctoral Researcher, Horns Lab
About The Position
The Horns Lab is seeking motivated, hard-working, and curious scientists. Our lab develops and applies technologies that bridge synthetic biology and genomics to answer fundamental and translational questions in human health, with a particular emphasis on immunology and neuroscience. We build new tools and use them to discover mechanisms in complex, dynamic systems, including the immune system, the brain, and other tissues. Postdocs in the lab are encouraged to lead ambitious, independent projects, resulting in high-impact publications, and to prepare for long-term careers in academia or industry. You will have the opportunity to collaborate widely across Arc, Stanford, and the broader Bay Area ecosystem, with access to strong platforms in our lab and our institutions for genomics, single-cell technologies, synthetic biology, computation, and experimental model systems. The questions we ask: We are interested in how cells change over time and how those dynamics drive health and disease, and in building technologies to measure and control those dynamics. Example questions include: How can we measure cellular dynamics non-destructively at scale, capturing histories, interactions, and functional outputs? How do extracellular vesicles (EVs) and virus-like particles (VLPs) interact with cells and tissues, and what molecular rules govern secretion, trafficking, uptake, and cargo delivery? How can we engineer delivery systems to target specific cell types and achieve efficient cytosolic delivery with minimal off-target effects? How do immune cells change state, migrate, and interact with tissues over time during homeostasis, inflammation, and disease? How can we profile immune receptor specificity and function at scale (TCRs/BCRs) to decipher immune recognition and control immune behaviors? The approaches we take: We combine synthetic biology, genomics, cellular and mammalian models, and computation. Depending on the project, approaches may include: Mammalian synthetic biology Single-cell and spatial multi-omics Engineering and mechanistic study of EVs, VLPs, and other delivery systems Immune cell engineering and functional assays Sequencing-based measurement technologies Computational analysis and modeling of high-dimensional datasets About you You are extremely curious and self-motivated. You thrive in a fast-paced environment while conducting rigorous and impactful research. You are intellectually independent and enjoy proposing and driving new research directions (with input from your PI). You are eager to learn and adopt new techniques. You are excited to solve puzzles that have translational impact and/or enable new discovery and therapeutic approaches. You have a strong foundation in synthetic biology or genomics technology development, and/or in immunology or neuroscience.
Requirements
- Doctorate (PhD, MD, MD/PhD, DVM, or equivalent) in bioengineering, synthetic biology, genomics, immunology, neuroscience, molecular biology, or a related field.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including a track record of scientific writing (manuscripts, preprints, or equivalent).
- Demonstrated ability to work in a fast-paced environment and be both an independent thinker and a highly collaborative team player.
Nice To Haves
- Single-cell sequencing and analysis (scRNA-seq, scATAC-seq, CITE-seq)
- Spatial transcriptomics and multi-omics
- Pooled perturbation screens (CRISPRi/a/KO, Perturb-seq)
- Building new sequencing-based assays or new measurement modalities
- Molecular engineering (e.g. protein design and engineering)
- Mammalian synthetic biology (e.g. genetic circuit design)
- High-throughput library design and screening in mammalian cells
- Immune cell biology or engineering
- Immune receptor biology and profiling
- Neurobiology
- EVs, VLPs, or related nanoparticle systems
- In vivo models (e.g. mouse)
- Expertise in analysis of high-dimensional datasets (e.g. single-cell transcriptomics, spatial transcriptomics, pooled screening, using Python or R)
- Strong quantitative mindset
Responsibilities
- Conduct high-impact research: Design, execute, and analyze experiments; take end-to-end ownership of a research project within the lab’s scientific focus, with guidance from the PI and increasing independence as you develop expertise.
- Develop as a future scientific leader: Publish first-author papers in high-impact journals, present at national and international conferences, and build a network of collaborators across Arc, Stanford, and beyond.
- Foster scientific excellence: Mentor and train research associates, technicians, and students; engage in Arc-wide activities (seminars, symposia); contribute to a collaborative research environment; maintain rigorous experimental records and documentation; and contribute to lab operations including protocol development and maintaining shared infrastructure.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Mid Level
Education Level
Ph.D. or professional degree
Number of Employees
101-250 employees
