Arc Institute Postdoctoral Researcher, Neuro-Immune Interactions (Pluvinage Lab) in Palo Alto, California, USA
This Arc Institute postdoc opening is for a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Pluvinage Lab in Palo Alto, California, USA, focused on neuro-immune interactions. Early-career postdocs are eligible, and freshers are eligible as recent doctorates.
Arc Institute Postdoc Job Details
Organization: Arc Institute
Position: Postdoctoral Researcher, Neuro-Immune Interactions (Pluvinage Lab)
Location: Palo Alto, California, USA
Experience Level: Early-career postdoc
Job Description
Arc Institute is seeking a Postdoc to join the Pluvinage Lab at the Arc Institute. The goal of the Pluvinage Lab is to improve the lives of patients with neurological diseases. The lab does this by exploring undiagnosed autoimmunity in rare mystery cases and common neurodegenerative conditions alike.
Starting with clinical observations and primary patient tissue, the lab uses functional genomics, protein display technologies, and computational tools to embark on deep mechanistic dives into the contribution of autoimmunity to cognitive function. The work will have the potential to uncover novel autoantibodies that drive cognitive decline in autoimmune encephalitis, that modulate cognitive decline in dementia, and that promote cognitive resilience in healthy brain aging.
The questions the lab asks:
- How do autoantibodies regulate cognition?
- What is the source, target, and mechanism of pathogenic autoantibodies in neurological disease?
- How can we eliminate pathogenic autoantibodies while leaving the rest of the immune system intact?
- How does comorbid autoimmunity contribute to cognitive decline in neurodegeneration?
- Are there protective autoantibodies that promote cognitive resilience in healthy brain aging?
The approaches the lab takes: discovery-driven projects starting with human samples (cerebrospinal fluid, PBMCs, brain tissue) from curated cohorts of patients with neurological diseases, CRISPR screens, phage display, immune repertoire sequencing.
An Arc Institute postdoc will be encouraged to lead independent projects resulting in high impact publications, present at conferences, and prepare for long-term careers in academia or industry.
Researchers exploring similar roles can also see this Lund University postdoc in molecular neuroanatomy and the St. Jude postdoctoral fellow position in developmental neurobiology.
Arc Institute Postdoc Eligibility Criteria
- Early-career postdoc; Freshers eligible as recent doctorates.
- Clinical residents or fellows interested in physician-scientist pathways are encouraged to apply.
About Arc Institute
Arc Institute is an independent nonprofit research organization at the interface of artificial intelligence and biology, working to accelerate scientific progress and understand the root causes of complex diseases. Founded in 2021 and based in Palo Alto, Arc partners with Stanford University, UC Berkeley, and UC San Francisco.
Unlike academia, our scientists have long-term funding and industry-like resources. Unlike industry, they’re free to pursue high-risk, long-term research without commercial pressures. Arc’s Technology Centers and Core Investigator labs work side by side, integrating experimental and computational biology under one roof to tackle problems neither could solve alone.
Arc’s two Institute Initiatives reflect this model in action:
- Virtual Cell Initiative: Building a full-stack virtual cell model to identify disease mechanisms and nominate drug targets, accelerating the path from biological insight to clinical trials.
- Alzheimer’s Disease Initiative: Mapping the genes, pathways, and environmental factors behind Alzheimer’s disease to develop drug candidates that address root causes.
More than 300 Arconauts work together at Arc’s Palo Alto headquarters, and each Arc Institute postdoc is backed by substantial long-term philanthropic funding.
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