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Postdoctoral Fellow
Postdoctoral Researcher – Pediatric Hematology Full-time
The Khandros lab is looking for a postdoctoral researcher to join our team in the Division of Hematology at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. I am a physician scientist with a clinical focus on red blood cell disorders such as sickle cell disease and thalassemia. These diseases cause a significant amount of death and suffering in some of the lowest resource communities worldwide. Our research focus is on the mechanisms of hemoglobin gene regulation and red blood cell development, as well as developing novel therapeutics for these diseases. Our work involves a multi-disciplinary approach across the fields of developmental biology, molecular biology, and epigenetics, and we utilize cutting-edge multi-omics techniques, CRISPR screening, mouse disease models, and patient cell-based studies.
One of the primary areas of study in the lab is re-activation of fetal hemoglobin in adult red blood cells, which is the key therapeutic approach in sickle cell disease. There are several projects focused on this area:
- We have used CRISPR screening to identify several nucleosome remodeler complexes as potential activators of fetal hemoglobin gene transcription and are now carrying out follow-up mechanistic studies in primary cell cultures and in mouse models.
- Fetal hemoglobin can be turned on in adults only in a specific subset of cells called F-cells. We’re using cell sorting approaches combined with epigenetic analysis such as ATAC-seq, and chromatin conformation capture, as well as single-cell approaches to characterize why this subset of cells is able to reactivate fetal hemoglobin.
- We are developing new CRISPR screening approaches in primary erythroid cells to identify new therapeutic targets for sickle cell disease and beta thalassemia.
My lab is part of a larger research group with the epigenetics laboratory of Dr. Gerd Blobel at CHOP. The Division of Hematology provides an outstanding scientific and training environment. There will be many opportunities to participate in exciting cutting-edge science in our projects, collaborations and overall scientific environment at Penn/CHOP.
Expertise in molecular biology, epigenetics, or computational biology would be welcome, but not required.