Postdoctoral Researcher – Metabolism of the Neuroblastoma Tumor Microenvironment

**Postdoctoral Researcher – Metabolism of the Neuroblastoma Tumor Microenvironment** ==================================================================================== #### **100%, Zurich, fixed-term** This joint postdoctoral position is part of the recently awarded **NCCR Children and Cancer**. It bridges the **Laboratory of Exercise and Health**, headed by Prof. Dr. Katrien De Bock (Department of Health Sciences and Technology, ETH Zurich), an expert in vascular metabolism with the **laboratory of Dr. Raphael Morscher** (University Children's Hospital Zurich), an expert in tumor metabolism, with the purpose to advance our understanding on the metabolic determinants of the tumor mircroenvironment in neuroblastoma. **Project background** ---------------------- The position focuses on understanding how the metabolic tumor microenvironment (TME) is rewired in pediatric cancer, with a particular focus on neuroblastoma. The successful applicant will elucidate the architecture and composition of the TME with a focus on blood-vessels and immune-cells. They will study how nutrient availability correlates to TME features and how it can be modulated for treatment. To do so, the postdoc will establish mouse models of neuroblastoma and use them to dissect how the tumor reprograms its metabolic niche, in particular the crosstalk between tumor vasculature, immune cells and metabolism. The work is carried out in close collaboration with the wider NCCR consortium, combining human patient samples, genetic mouse models, single-cell and spatial transcriptomics, and functional vascular/metabolic assays. For more information on the two labs, visit the following Websites: Laboratory of Exercise and Health and Morscher Lab For more information on the project, please visit Children and Cancer (Workpackage 2.2). **Job description** ------------------- Working closely with both PIs and the NCCR consortium, you will: * Establish and characterize novel genetic and/or orthotopic mouse models of neuroblastoma * Investigate how neuroblastoma rewires the metabolic tumor microenvironment, with emphasis on vascular and immune-metabolic crosstalk * Characterize tumor vascular diversity, organization and metabolic gradients, and their relationship to hypoxia and nutrient/oxygen delivery * Profile the immune TME and its interaction with the tumor vasculature, using approaches such as single-cell/spatial transcriptomics as well as metabolomics * Test interventions that target the immune-vascular interface (e.g. vascular normalization, HEV-like reprogramming) to identify actionable metabolic vulnerabilities * Collaborate with other NCCR workpackages to integrate metabolic, vascular and immune data into a systems-level view of the pediatric TME * Contribute to manuscript preparation, data presentation and reporting within the consortium **Profile** ----------- We are looking for a passionate researcher with a strong scientific background: * PhD in cancer biology, vascular