King's College London

About Us

​The Faculty of Life Sciences and Medicine is a leader in medical education and research, providing a vibrant and supportive environment for its faculty and students. By joining King’s, you will be part of an institution that values innovation, collaboration, and the advancement of knowledge in genetics and beyond.

​The Department of Medical and Molecular Genetics is located in the life sciences cluster in historic and vibrant London Bridge. It hosts advanced research facilities for genetic investigations of both common and rare diseases, alongside studies of fundamental mechanisms of gene regulation. With internationally recognised programs in both computational and experimental genetics, the department serves as a hub for interdisciplinary research, encouraging collaboration across various scientific and clinical disciplines and maintaining strong connections with international research communities.​

About the role

This post-doctoral position is funded by a Lupus Research Alliance Mechanistic Award held jointly by Dr Deborah Cunninghame Graham (PI) and Prof Timothy Vyse (co-PI), within the Department of Medical and Molecular Genetics at King’s College London.

OX40 (encoded by TNFRSF4) and its exclusive receptor OX40L (encoded by TNFSF4), play key roles in pathogenesis of the autoimmune disease, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE).  The interaction between these two TNF-superfamily members on the surface of activated T and B cells leads to a strong co-stimulatory signal.   SLE genetic analyses support the conjecture that increased activity of the OX40/OX40L axis drives the disease.  We have shown that serum levels of soluble OX40 and its ligand are elevated in many lupus patients compared with healthy controls.  Several therapeutics have been developed that block OX40-OX40L.  This proposal seeks to: (1) explore the clinical utility and biology of soluble OX40 and OX40L; and (2) to define a subset of patients who would most likely benefit from OX40-OX40L blocking therapeutics and hence support re-purposing of the reagents already available.

The project forms part of an international programme of work defining the roles of OX40 and OX40L in SLE, including juvenile-onset disease.  The post-holder will work within a multi-disciplinary environment, including PhD students as well as master’s and undergraduate students undertaking research projects in the wider group.  There will be close interaction between wet-lab scientists and their analytical counterparts.  The post-doc will be expected to contribute the findings his/her work with other members of the group, thereby contributing to the overall biological interpretation.  The post-holder will take the lead in liaising with researchers in external collaborating groups to harmonise the genetic, transcriptomic, proteomic, clinical and experimental data for the study cohort.  They will take responsibility for optimising the MSD multiplex immunoassay to measure the levels of serum proteins in the study samples and contribute to the analysis methods to assess their value as prognostic biomarkers.  The post-holder will also perform pQTL analyses and use mendelian randomisation methods to seek evidence for the causality.  They will also set up and analyse multi-parameter flow cytometry panels to assess how immune cell activation correlates with serum levels of OX40/L and to identify the likely cellular source of serum OX40 or serum OX40L.

This is a full time post (35 hours per week), and you will be offered a fixed term contract until 31/03/2028.

Research staff at King’s are entitled to at least 10 days per year (pro-rata) for professional development. This entitlement, from the  Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers, applies to Postdocs, Research Assistants, Research and Teaching Technicians, Teaching Fellows and AEP equivalent up to and including grade 7. Visit the  Centre for Research Staff Development for more information.

About You

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

Essential criteria

1. PhD in Immunology, Functional Genomics, Genetics or related subject
2. Extensive experience in designing multi-parameter flow cytometry panels and data interpretation
3. Familiarity in designing multi-parameter flow cytometry panels and data interpretation
4. Experience in cell culture including the design optimisation of a range of functional read outs such as cell proliferation and differentiation and cytokine levels
5. Bioinformatics/statistical skills in annotating candidate functional molecules using gene-set enrichment approaches with R, Python etc
6. A high degree of self-motivation and initiative and ability to work both independently and collaboratively within multi-disciplinary teams to meet project deadlines.

*  Please note that this is a PhD level role but candidates who have submitted their thesis and are awaiting award of their PhDs will be considered. In these circumstances the appointment will be made at Grade 5, spine point 30 with the title of Research Assistant. Upon confirmation of the award of the PhD, the job title will become Research Associate and the salary will increase to Grade 6. 

Desirable criteria

1. Proven experience working with human blood samples and in harmonising clinical data from collaborating groups prior to statistical analyses
2. Experience working in an international functional genomics collaboration
3. Experience of working in autoimmune disease environment
4. Detailed orientated, in the development of novel experimental systems/research strategies, exhibiting strong organizational and problem-solving skills
5. Ability to write high quality reports and manuscripts 

Downloading a copy of our Job Description

Full details of the role and the skills, knowledge and experience required can be found in the Job Description document, provided at the bottom of the page. This document will provide information of what criteria will be assessed at each stage of the recruitment process.

Further Information

At King’s, we believe that the diversity of our community and a culture that is welcoming, open, inclusive and collaborative, are great strengths of the university.

The Equality Act of 2010 protects the rights of our students and staff and provides a framework to fulfil our duties to eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation and in addition, to advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations between those who share a protected characteristic and those who do not. At times, this will include balancing rights and beliefs that can feel in tension.

We are committed to free speech and to academic freedom, believing that our foundational purpose as a university, is to create spaces where a wide range of ideas, including ideas that are controversial, can be discussed and debated, and where members of our community can express lawful views without fear of intimidation, harassment or discrimination.

When engaging in the robust exchange of ideas, we ask that our community is mindful of our Dignity at King’s guidance.

We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the person specification section of the job description. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.

We reserve the right to close adverts early due to the volume of applications we receive. While the closing date may change, all adverts will close at 23:59 to allow sufficient time for applications to be submitted on that day.

We encourage you to apply at the earliest opportunity to avoid disappointment as once we have closed a vacancy you will be unable to submit your application.

To find out how our managers will review your application, please take a look at our ‘How we Recruit’ pages.

Interviews are due to be held in April 2026.