Research Assistant in the field of human immunology

Do you want to contribute to top quality medical research?

The Niklas Björkström group is part of the Center for Infectious Medicine (CIM), a leading research unit in translational studies of the human immune system in the context of chronic inflammation, infectious diseases, and cancer. At CIM, we offer an engaging research environment where you may contribute to high quality research on an international level. A key focus of the group is to gain insights into the biology of tissue resident immune cells in liver. Through unique collaborations with clinical units at the Karolinska University Hospital, we receive a high number of tissue and peripheral blood samples. In the liver we have a specific focus on human tissue-resident NK cells and study their phenotype, function, development, and role during liver diseases such as liver hepatitis.

Your mission

We are looking for a research assistant who will be working together with PhD students, postdocs and research nurses in projects related to human liver immunology. A full-time position is available for 1 year. You will have the opportunity to strengthen your current experimental skills as well as learn new cutting-edge techniques. A main task will be to work in a large EU-funded project with human blood samples including isolation, biobanking, characterization of immune cells from liver and blood. You will be exposed to advanced immunological methods such as high dimensional flow cytometry, multiplexed imaging (MACsima) and spatial transcriptomics (Visium). We are looking for a highly motivated and well-organized person that must have good communication skills and ability to interact with colleagues and collaborators.

Key Responsibilities:

• Isolation and storage/biobanking of cells from fresh human blood and tissues collected from patients with liver infections, cell culturing, flow cytometry and other analytical techniques.
• Sectioning using Cryostat and microtome.
• Work on optimizing spatial methods for studies of immune cells in tissues.
  • In vitro experiments using human immune cells to study their function.

Your profile

The successful candidate should have:

• Master’s degree in Medical Science, Immunology or equivalent when the position starts
• Experience in cell isolation from human blood or tissues, culturing of primary cells, DNA/RNA isolation, ELISA, qPCR and data analysis.
• Previous experience with multiparametric flow cytometry/cell sorting is a merit
• Excellent organizational skills
• Previous contribution to scientific publications is a merit
• Capacity to fluently speak and write in English.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and references from previous work environments.

We put great emphasis on personal suitability.

What do we offer?

A creative and inspiring environment with wide-ranging expertise and interests. Karolinska Institutet is one of the world's leading medical universities. Our vision is to pursue the development of knowledge about life and to promote a better health for all. At Karolinska Institutet, we conduct successful medical research and hold the largest range of medical education in Sweden. Karolinska Institutet is also a state university, which entitles you to several good benefits through our collective agreement. And you get to practice freely in our modern wellness facilities, where trained staff are on site.

Location: Flemingsberg

Choose to work at KI – Ten reasons why

Application

Welcome to apply at the latest 2025-06-30

The application is to be submitted through the Varbi recruitment system.In this recruitment, you will apply with your CV without a personal letter. Instead, you will answer some questions about why you are applying for the job in the application form. 

Want to make a difference? Join us and contribute to better health for all

1. Niklas Björkström, Recruiting manager, [email protected]
2. Jenna Almqvist, HR-Partner, [email protected]

1. Belinda Pannagel, SACO, [email protected]
2. Peter Svensson, SACO, [email protected]
3. Mari Gilljam, OFR, [email protected]