Graduate Student
Positions
Join Our Dynamic and
Growing Laboratory
There are currently no available positions for graduate students in the Heit lab unless a student is coming with funding
(i.e. NSERC or CIHR studentship). Additional
positions are unlikly to open until after September 2013. Please note
that I will not reply to applicants who have not met the following
requirmenets:
-
All prospective students must be pre-approved by the department of Microbiology and Immunology and must meet departmental entrance requirements.
- Have their own funding (studentship, etc), and
- E-mail Dr. Heit with a CV, grades, and contact information for 2 references.
Undergraduate
Positions
Fall 2013 -
Honours Project
Starting in September one biochemistry/immunology honours program is available in the Heit lab. Honours students must apply through the matching system run by the Department of Biochemistry.
The
Project:
Macrophages in our bodies remove bacteria and fungi through a process
termed "phagocytosis", where in pathogens are internalized into a
membrane-bound intracellular compartment, to which degradative enzymes,
acids and oxidants are delivered. Macrophages remove apoptotic
(dead/dying) cells though a similar process termed "efferocytosis". The
efferocytic removal of the ~80 billion apoptotic cells generated daily
in our bodies is critical to maintaining homeostasis, with failures in
this system leading to chronic inflammatory diseases such as
atherosclerosis, and to autoimmune disorders such as lupus.
CD93 is a key macrophage receptor in efferocytosis, with mutations in CD93 leading to inflammatory diseases such as atherosclerosis and Alzheimer’s dementia, as well as to autoimmune disorders such as lupus. Despite its central role in many diseases, the signaling induced by CD93 remains to be elucidated. This project aims to uncover these signalling pathways, with the long-term goal of understanding how failures in this pathway lead to diseases such as atherosclerosis. The student taking on this this project will pursue these gaols using a combination of genetic, cellular and molecular biology approaches, including generation of CD93 mutants, phosphoprotein immunoprecipitation, western blotting and mass spectrometry.
More detail on this
project will be
discussed an interview.
References:
Mallary C. et al. CD93: Recent Advances
and Implications in
Disease. Current
Drug Targets, 2012, Vol 13 [link]
Thorp EB. Mechanisms of failed apoptotic cell clearance by phagocyte
subsets in
cardiovascular disease. Apoptosis. 2010
Sep;15(9):1124-36. [link]
van der Net JB, et al. Replication study of 10 genetic
polymorphisms associated
with coronary heart disease in a specific high-risk
population with familial
hypercholesterolemia. Eur Heart J. 2008
Sep;29(18):2195-201. [link]
Summer 2013 - Work-Study Student
A single work-study position is available this summer in the Heit lab. Potential students must by pre-approved by the work-study office, and must apply using according to the instructions within the job posting at Career Central.
Do not contact Dr. Heit directly about these positions until you have gone through the proper channels.
We do not generally accept volunteers in the lab, however exceptions may be made for exceptional students.
Post Doctoral Fellows & Technicians
Post Doctoral Fellows:
We are always looking for well-experienced post-doctoral fellows to join our team. Preference will be given to fellows who have secured funding prior to joining the our laboratory.
Technicians
Due to current budget limitations we are unable to accept applications from technicians or research assocaites at this time.
