Post-Doctoral Research Fellow - Microbiome Therapeutics and Cancer Immunotherapy

About this position

Position Description

The laboratory of Dr. Arielle Elkrief, MD, Co-Director of the CHUM Microbiome Centre, is seeking a highly motivated Postdoctoral Fellow to join a multidisciplinary research program focused on developing microbiome-based therapies to improve outcomes to cancer immunotherapy.

Our laboratory integrates clinical trials, patient biospecimens, microbiome profiling, immunology, and preclinical models to translate discoveries about the microbiome into new therapeutic strategies. Current areas of investigation include live biotherapeutic products (LBPs), prebiotics, and dietary interventions, with a particular focus on melanoma and lung cancer.

The successful candidate will play a central role in the preclinical and translational development of novel microbiome therapeutics, working closely with clinicians, immunologists, microbiologists, computational biologists, trainees, and collaborators. Projects are closely connected to prospective clinical trials, providing the opportunity to investigate biological mechanisms identified in patient samples and translate preclinical findings toward therapeutic testing.

The position is particularly suited to a scientist interested in working at the interface of cancer immunology, microbiology, and therapeutic development.

Responsibilities

The successful candidate will:

Conceive, design, lead, and conduct preclinical studies evaluating microbiome-based therapies in cancer immunotherapy.

Develop and perform murine syngeneic tumor models, including microbiome-modulation experiments.

Conduct immune profiling of human and murine specimens, including multicolor/high-dimensional flow cytometry.

Perform molecular and microbiological assays, including qPCR, tissue culture, and analysis of biological specimens.

Integrate findings from clinical samples and preclinical models to identify mechanisms and therapeutic hypotheses with direct translational relevance.

Work closely with computational biologists and microbiome scientists to integrate metagenomic, immunological, and experimental data.

Contribute to manuscript preparation, scientific presentations, and grant applications.

Participate in the supervision and scientific mentorship of students and junior trainees.

Implement rigorous practices for experimental documentation, sample management, reproducibility, and data management.

• Qualifications

Requirements:

PhD in immunology, cancer biology, cancer immunology, microbiology, or a closely related discipline.

Strong experience conducting murine experiments.

Experience with flow cytometry and immune phenotyping.

Experience with molecular biology techniques, including qPCR and development of in vitro assays.

Demonstrated ability to independently design, troubleshoot, and execute experiments.

Strong scientific writing and communication skills.

Ability to manage multiple projects and work effectively within a multidisciplinary research environment.

Strong organizational skills, scientific curiosity, and a collaborative approach

Research Environment

The successful candidate will join the CHUM Microbiome Centre , Co-Directed by Dr. Arielle Elkrief and Dr. Bertrand Routy, a multidisciplinary environment bringing together clinicians, microbiologists, immunologists, computational biologists, and clinical trial researchers focused on translating microbiome discoveries into therapeutic interventions.

The position provides access to patient samples from prospective immunotherapy and microbiome-intervention clinical trials, established preclinical and germ-free experimental platforms, and close collaborations across clinical and basic science teams.

Our objective is to move beyond descriptive microbiome studies toward the rational development and testing of microbiome-based therapeutics that can ultimately be evaluated in patients.

Position Details

Full-time position: 35 hours/week

Contract: 24 months, renewable

Salary: Determined according to experience and institutional salary scales

Location: CRCHUM, Montréal, Québec, Canada

Start date: As soon as possible