Description
The Benavente Lab at the SUNY College of Optometry is seeking a highly motivated, independent, and creative Postdoctoral Research Fellow to investigate the cellular, molecular, and genomic mechanisms underlying visually guided eye growth and myopia development. Our research integrates approaches from vision science, molecular biology, and genomics to explore how myopic eye growth alters retinal cell biology to elucidate the molecular basis of refractive error and associated retinal changes. The successful candidate will lead experimental design and data analysis within a collaborative, multidisciplinary team dedicated to advancing both fundamental and translational vision research.
Requirements
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Location: SUNY College of Optometry, New York, NY, USA
Position Type: Full-time, Postdoctoral Fellowship
Start Date: January 2026
Application Deadline: Open until filled
Key Responsibilities
- Design and conduct experiments focused on ocular cell biology, molecular signaling, and gene regulation (e.g., immunohistochemistry, confocal microscopy, apoptosis assays, western blot, ELISA, cell culture, qRT-PCR etc).
- Develop and implement retinal genomics and transcriptomics approaches (e.g., scRNAseq, spatial transcriptomics).
- Data processing, analysis, and interpretation.
- Contribute to manuscripts, grant proposals, and conference presentations.
- Supervise and mentor graduate and undergraduate trainees.
- Engage actively in a small, collaborative team of clinicians, molecular biologists, and neuroscientists.
Qualifications
- Ph.D. in molecular biology, cell biology, genetics/genomics, vision science, or a related field.
- Strong background in cellular and molecular biology techniques.
- Experience with genomic or transcriptomic data generation and analysis is highly desirable.
- Proven record of research productivity, demonstrated by publications and presentations.
- Excellent communication, organizational, and teamwork skills.
Preferred Experience
- Research background in ocular or retinal biology.
- Familiarity with animal models of eye development or disease.
- Experience in computational biology or bioinformatics.
