Training and Employment

Internship for master’s degree

A position for curricular internship of Master’s degree is available from February 2021. The topic of the internship will focus on the in vitro production of 3D constructs starting from decellularized diaphragm, muscle cells and neuronal cells with the aim of studying the role of the neuronal component in diaphragmatic development and regeneration. The project is part of a broader vision of novel tissue engineering strategies for the treatment of congenital malformations.

The internship must take place at the Tissue Engineering laboratory (PI: Martina Piccoli) at Istituto di Ricerca Pediatrica Città della Speranza, Corso Stati Uniti 4, Padova.

References:

https://www.irpcds.org/lab/tissue-engineering/
https://www.irpcds.org/researcher/piccoli-martina/
m.piccoli@irpcds.org

Postdoctoral position in Prof Giampetro Viola’s Experimental Cancer Pharmacology Laboratory at Fondazione Istituto di Ricerca Pediatrica (IRP) Città della Speranza, Padua, Italy.

Research Area:
The research group of Experimental Cancer Pharmacology (Head Prof Giampietro Viola) investigates the molecular mechanisms underlying chemotherapy drug resistance in different tumoral context. In particular, the set-up of a novel ex vivo model of drug resistance by treating Patient-derived Medulloblastoma (PD-MB) cells with conventional chemotherapy, allowed the identification of new therapeutic options for chemotherapy refractory patients by exploiting an up-to-date High-Throughput Screening (HTS) platform and data analysis pipeline to test more than 3000 drugs. The prospective Postdoc Fellow will have the opportunity to collaborate within the project entitled “Targeting BAGs in Medulloblastoma: understanding BAGs interactome to revert apoptosis escape in resistant cells” funded by the Italian Association for Cancer Research (AIRC). The aim of this project is to depict the interactome of the Bcl2-associated AthanoGene (BAG1-6) family members in medulloblastoma chemotherapy-resistant cells to identify oncogenic protein-protein interaction and design a novel BAG inhibitor by innovative inter-disciplinary approaches.

Postdoctoral fellow tasks:
Design, implementation, and conductance of the project related tasks:
• Medulloblastoma primary cell and organoid cultures
• High-Throughput Drug Screening (HTS)
• Molecular cloning, gene silencing and overexpression
• Co-immunoprecipitation and interactome data analysis
• Gene expression profiling (RNAseq)
• Western blotting, immunofluorescence, and flow cytometry

Requirements:
• PhD in the field of Oncology or Molecular Biology.
• Experience in molecular biology and cloning is required.
• Strong hands-on experience with cell culture is required.
• Experience with primary cell culture, drug screening and flow cytometry would be a plus.
• Good communication skills in English are required.

We offer:
The successful candidate will be hosted in the lab of Pediatric onco-hematology, department of Woman’s and Child’s Health, University of Padova. In particular, the Experimental Cancer Pharmacology group is embedded in the outstanding scientific environment of the Istituto di Ricerca Pediatrica (IRP) https://www.irpcds.org providing state-of-the-art research facilities and a highly integrative network of life science groups. We offer a multifaceted scientific project with excellent technical facilities, as well as strong scientific collaborations.

Contact & Application:
Applications should include a CV containing a complete list of publications, a brief statement of research experiences, the addresses of possible referees, and should be submitted by the 1st of March 2022, via email to:
Dr Elena Mariotto | elena.mariotto@unipd.it
Prof Giampietro Viola | giampietro.viola.1@unipd.it

Postdoctoral Fellow Position in gene therapy for neurometabolic diseases in Prof Alessandra Biffi’s HSC Gene Therapy Laboratory at Fondazione Istituto di Ricerca Pediatrica (IRP) Città della Speranza, Padua, Italy.

Postdoctoral Fellow positions are available in the team of Prof. Biffi in the HSC Gene Therapy Laboratory, Istituto di Ricerca Pediatrica – University of Padova (Padua, Italy). The successful candidate will have the opportunity to work in Italy and abroad to develop innovative strategies of gene therapy for neurometabolic diseases, and investigate the therapeutic role of the microglia in this context. The team is part of a larger and enthusiastic group of scientists strongly committed to translational medicine for many genetic diseases.

The applicant should have a recent or expected Ph.D. degree in biological or biomedical sciences. Strong skills in molecular and cellular biology are required. Familiarity with hematopoietic stem cell manipulation and transduction, and murine models is desirable.

The applicant should be committed to developing an independent research career and should be an excellent team worker, fluent in spoken and written English. We offer a dynamic research environment, a chance to improve skills and knowledge and make important contribution to the biomedical research. A competitive salary will be offered, depending on qualifications and experience.

Applications, including a CV and the names and contact details of two referees should be sent by email to: anna.eccellente@unipd.it

Animal Technician position in Prof Alessandra Biffi’s HSC Gene Therapy Laboratory at Fondazione Istituto di Ricerca Pediatrica (IRP) Città della Speranza, Padua, Italy.

An animal technician position is immediately available in the team of Prof. Alessandra Biffi, MD. We are looking for a highly motivated and qualified lab technician for mouse handling and in vivo experimentation. Experience in mouse model handling, surgery and behavioral testing is required; expertise in cell and/or molecular biology, flow cytometry and general biomedical laboratory procedures will also be considered.

The successful candidate will work in a stimulating research environment, and will be part of an enthusiastic team of researchers strongly committed to translational medicine. The laboratory main objective is the development of innovative gene therapy strategies for neurodegenerative diseases.

Responsibilities for this position:

• mice routine check and manipulation;
• surgery in mice;
• behavioral testing;
• routine molecular biology assays (PCR, ddPCR) for mouse genotyping;
• cell culture.

Your qualifications:

• Bachelor, master, PhD or equivalent with lab wet experience;
• High accuracy, reliability, precision;
• Ability to manage multiple tasks;
• Collaborative;
• Basic/good oral and written English skills;
• Experience with FACS analysis and hematopoietic stem cells transplantation are considered a plus

We offer:

• A dynamic lab environment and a chance to make important contribution to biomedical research
• A competitive salary, depending on qualifications and experience

Applications, including a brief motivation letter describing the reason of your interest in this position, a CV and the names and contact details of two referees should be sent by email to: anna.eccellente@unipd.it

Lab Technician position in Prof Alessandra Biffi’s HSC Gene Therapy Laboratory at Fondazione Istituto di Ricerca Pediatrica (IRP) Città della Speranza, Padua, Italy.

A research technician position is immediately available in the team of Prof. Alessandra Biffi, MD. We are looking for a highly motivated and qualified lab technician. Experience in molecular and cellular biology, including PCR, cell culture, viral vector production and general biomedical laboratory procedures is required. Experience with mouse models is a plus.

The successful candidate will work in a stimulating research environment, and will be part of an enthusiastic team of researchers strongly committed to translational medicine. The laboratory main objective is the development of innovative gene therapy strategies for neurodegenerative diseases.

Responsibilities for this position:

• Production of third generation lentiviral vectors (biosafety level 2);
• Cell culture and transduction;
• Routine molecular biology assays (PCR, ddPCR, ELISA).

Your qualifications:

• Bachelor, master, PhD or equivalent with lab wet experience;
• High accuracy, reliability, precision;
• Ability to manage multiple tasks;
• Collaborative;
• Basic/good oral and written English skills;
• Experience with FACS analysis and hematopoietic stem cells transplantation are considered a plus.

We offer:

• A dynamic lab environment and a chance to make important contribution to biomedical research
• A competitive salary, depending on qualifications and experience

Applications, including a brief motivation letter describing the reason of your interest in this position, a CV and the names and contact details of two referees should be sent by email to: anna.eccellente@unipd.it

One-year postdoctoral fellowship position in the Clinical Genetics and Epidemiology group directed by Prof. Leonardo Salviati at Fondazione Istituto di Ricerca Pediatrica (IRP) Città della Speranza, Padua, Italy.

A full time Postdoctoral Research Fellow position is available at Clinical Genetics and Epidemiology group to identify and characterize human genes involved in the biogenesis of the mitochondrial respiratory chain.

The post is available immediately for 1 year possibly renewable to 2 years.

In the past few years, the Clinical Genetics and Epidemiology group identified mutations in patients with respiratory chain defects and developed simple tools to characterize these mutants. Our goal is to understand the pathophysiology of mitochondrial disorders to design novel therapeutic approaches.

IRP (https://www.irpcds.org) is a highly interdisciplinary and collaborative environment that offer state-of-the-art labs and facilities.

To apply send a cover letter and CV to Prof. Leonardo Salviati (leonardo.salviati@unipd.it).

Selected publications:

Vanillic Acid Restores Coenzyme Q Biosynthesis and ATP Production in Human Cells Lacking COQ6. Acosta Lopez MJ, Trevisson E, Canton M, Vazquez-Fonseca L, Morbidoni V, Baschiera E, Frasson C, Pelosi L, Rascalou B, Desbats MA, AlcázarFabra M, Ríos JJ, Sánchez-García A, Basso G, Navas P, Pierrel F, Brea-Calvo G, Salviati L. Oxid Med Cell Longev. 2019 Jul 10;2019:3904905.

DRP1-mediated mitochondrial shape controls calcium homeostasis and muscle mass. Favaro G, Romanello V, Varanita T, Andrea Desbats M, Morbidoni V, Tezze C, Albiero M, Canato M, Gherardi G, De Stefani D, Mammucari C, Blaauw B, Boncompagni S, Protasi F, Reggiani C, Scorrano L, Salviati L, Sandri M. Nat Commun. 2019 Jun 12;10(1):2576.

Mutations in COQ8B (ADCK4) found in patients with steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome alter COQ8B function. Vazquez Fonseca L, Doimo M, Calderan C, Desbats MA, Acosta MJ, Cerqua C, Cassina M, Ashraf S, Hildebrandt F, Sartori G, Navas P, Trevisson E, Salviati L. Hum Mutat. 2018 Mar;39(3):406-414.

Age-Associated Loss of OPA1 in Muscle Impacts Muscle Mass, Metabolic Homeostasis, Systemic Inflammation, and Epithelial Senescence. Tezze C, Romanello V, Desbats MA, Fadini GP, Albiero M, Favaro G, Ciciliot S, Soriano ME, Morbidoni V, Cerqua C, Loefler S, Kern H, Franceschi C, Salvioli S, Conte M, Blaauw B, Zampieri S, Salviati L, Scorrano L, Sandri M. Cell Metab. 2017 Jun 6;25(6):1374-1389.

Mitochondrial dysfunction in inherited renal disease and acute kidney injury.Emma F, Montini G, Parikh SM, Salviati L. Nat Rev Nephrol. 2016 May;12(5):267-80.

Positions available within the Laboratory NBTECH of Prof Elisa Cimetta at the Istituto di Ricerca Pediatrica (IRP) Città della Speranza, Padua, Italy

Two Master thesis student positions are available in Prof. Elisa Cimetta’s laboratory. Current research activities are focused on the study of Neuroblastoma (NB), a pediatric tumor, and aim at defining the role of hypoxia in influencing the physicochemical properties of the released exosomes.

The Master theses will focus on understanding key mechanisms of the cross-talk between NB and its microenvironment with the aim of identifying putative signals predisposing NB dissemination. In particular, the candidates will: i. carry out 3D NB cultures at different oxygen tensions; ii. isolate, purify and characterize the shedded exosomes; iii. perform protein and gene expression analysis; and iv. perform targeted secretome analysis of mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) treated with NB exosomes. ​

Students will be trained in advanced molecular, biochemical and cell biology techniques, and will work in a diverse team with engineers, biologists and biotechnologists.

Informal enquiries to elisa.cimetta@unipd.it