Postdoctoral Fellow-MSH-30040-222

Title: Postdoc in Shi lab 

Salary: $ 73,55

Department: Pharmacological Sciences

Physical work location: (must be proper street address): 

Name PI or Supervisor: (include phone and email): Yi Shi wally.yis@gmail.com

Web link to Lab: www.shi-lab.org

Web link to Department: https://icahn.mssm.edu/about/departments/pharmacological-sciences

Administrative Contact: (phone and email): Yoori Kim, 212-6598651, yoori.kim@mssm.edu

Details of Research Project:

The incumbent is expected to lead one or more innovative research projects in protein engineering and therapeutics, with a primary focus on nanobody development for next-generation therapeutic and diagnostic platforms. This role involves designing and optimizing nanobody-based solutions for a range of biomedical applications, leveraging cutting-edge AI-driven approaches, structural biology, and bioengineering techniques.

Projects include: 1) Apply AI-driven design and engineering strategies to develop nanobody candidates targeting infectious diseases, cancer, diabetes, and neurodegenerative disorders. 2) Develop biosensor platforms for high-sensitivity detection of blood biomarkers. 3) Engineer and optimize multispecific and multivalent nanobodies for enhanced antiviral and immunotherapy applications. 4) Develop novel strategies to facilitate membrane target degradation and payload delivery of chemical probes and inhibitors. 

Collaborative Research & Development: Work closely with cross-disciplinary teams in structural biology, computational modeling, immunotherapy, and chemical biology, to advance the development of next-generation theradiagnostic technologies.  The incumbent will also contribute to manuscript preparation, grant proposals, and presentations to support research funding and dissemination of findings.

Technical Duties: 

The incumbent will be responsible for executing advanced research protocols related to nanobody engineering, therapeutic development, and biosensor technology. Key technical duties include: 

Protein/antibody Engineering:

Protein Expression & Purification:

Expression of recombinant nanobodies and fusion constructs in bacterial, mammalian, and yeast systems.

Purification using affinity chromatography and size-exclusion chromatography.

Protein quality assessment through SDS-PAGE, Western blot, and biophysical and binding affinity characterization (DSF, DLS, MST, SPR, BLI, etc.).

Chemical conjugation of nanobodies with payloads (small molecules, toxins, fluorescent probes).

Cellular & Functional Assays:

Conducting cell-based binding and internalization assays using flow cytometry and confocal microscopy.

Functional testing of multivalent nanobody constructs in immunotherapy applications including cell-based assays and potentially animal models.

Educational and other Requirements for the position: PhD

Goals/Outcomes of the Research Project:

The research project aims to develop and translate next-generation nanobody-based therapeutics and diagnostic platforms for applications in infectious diseases, cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, and metabolic diseases. The incumbent will play a key role in advancing protein therapeutics and diagnostic tools, contributing to innovations with real-world impact. The successful candidate is expected to publish high-quality papers, contribute to patent applications, and drive forward key discoveries that support both academic and translation. Additionally, we are committed to mentoring and supporting the candidate’s career development, providing opportunities to transition into leading roles in academia, biotechnology, or pharmaceutical industries.

Experience Required:

A Ph.D. in biochemistry, bioengineering, immunology, chemical biology, structure biology or a related field.

Strong expertise in protein/antibody engineering or chemical biology. 

Hands-on experience in biochemistry and biophysics.

Experience in cell-based assays, live-cell imaging, and immunoassays.

Familiarity with chemical conjugation techniques for targeted payload delivery is desirable.

Computational skills in protein modeling, docking, or protein design are a plus.

A strong track record of peer-reviewed publications in relevant fields.

Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a dynamic research environment.

Compensation Statement

The Mount Sinai Health System (MSHS) provides a salary range to comply with the New York City Law on Salary Transp