Job Description
The University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB), Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health (CVD) brings together more than four decades of innovative and life-saving research on vaccines and infectious diseases. http:// www.medschool.umaryland.edu/cvd/ .
The malaria research laboratory of Prof. Stefan H. I. Kappe at the Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health (CVD), University of Maryland School of Medicine, is recruiting a highly motivated Postdoctoral Fellow to investigate the immune mechanisms of protection against malaria infection mediated by vaccination.
The Kappe laboratory has pioneered the development of genetically attenuated malaria parasites (GAPs) and whole-sporozoite malaria vaccines designed to induce durable protective immunity against Plasmodium infection. Our research combines cutting-edge immunology, parasite biology, and translational vaccine development to understand how liver-stage malaria parasites interact with the host immune system, identify protective immune mechanisms and novel antigen targets, and define immune correlates of protection. Ongoing projects span basic immunology, systems biology, controlled human malaria infection (CHMI) studies, and clinical malaria vaccine development.
This position offers an exceptional opportunity to join a collaborative, multidisciplinary research program dedicated to advancing next-generation malaria vaccines while providing outstanding scientific mentorship and career development.
Research Areas
Research projects may include:
- Vaccine-induced CD8⁺ and CD4⁺ T-cell immunity
- Innate immune regulation of adaptive responses
- Immune correlates of protection against malaria
- Identification of protective malaria antigens
- Regulatory T-cell and inflammatory responses during infection
- Systems immunology and high-dimensional immune profiling
- Single-cell transcriptomics and T-cell receptor (TCR) repertoire analysis
- Translational studies supporting human malaria vaccine clinical trials
Responsibilities
Primary Duties and Responsibilities
- Design, develop, and execute independent and collaborative research projects investigating immune mechanisms underlying malaria infection and vaccine-induced protection.
- Perform advanced immunological experiments, including multiparameter flow cytometry, cell sorting, ELISA, ELISpot, intracellular cytokine staining, immune cell culture, cytotoxicity assays, and other functional immune assays.
- Apply and interpret high-dimensional immune profiling approaches, including spectral flow cytometry, mass cytometry (CyTOF), single-cell RNA sequencing, and T-cell receptor (TCR) repertoire analyses.
- Analyze complex immunological datasets using FlowJo, R, RStudio, and other statistical or bioinformatics tools to identify immune correlates of protection and mechanisms of vaccine-induced immunity.
- Investigate host-parasite interactions during liver-stage malaria infection using in vitro and in vivo experimental models.
- Contribute to studies evaluating immune responses induced by genetically attenuated parasite (GAP) vaccines, whole-sporozoite vaccines, and controlled human malaria infection (CHMI) studies.
- Design, optimize, troubleshoot, and document experimental protocols while maintaining accurate laboratory records and ensuring scientific rigor and reproducibility.
- Prepare manuscripts for publication, scientific presentations, fellowship applications, and contribute to grant proposals.
- Mentor graduate students, research technicians, and undergraduate trainees while fostering a collaborative and inclusive research environment.
- Collaborate effectively with multidisciplinary teams across immunology, molecular parasitology, bioinformatics, systems biology, and clinical research.
- Present research findings at laboratory meetings, institutional seminars, and national and international scientific conferences.
- Maintain compliance with institutional biosafety, animal care, laboratory safety, and research regulations.
Qualifications
Required Qualifications
- Ph.D. in Immunology, Microbiology, Infectious Diseases, Parasitology, or a closely related discipline.
- Strong background in cellular and molecular immunology, with demonstrated expertise in adaptive and/or innate immune responses.
- Hands-on experience with immunological techniques, including multiparameter flow cytometry, immune cell isolation, cell culture, and functional immune assays.
- Experience working with infectious disease models and/or animal models of infection and vaccination.
- Demonstrated ability to independently design, execute, troubleshoot, and interpret complex experiments.
- Excellent analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills with meticulous attention to detail.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills, including a record of scientific publications in peer-reviewed journals.
Job Info
- Job Identification: 589
- Job Category: Fellow
- Posting Date: 11/11/2026, 02:49 PM
- Apply Before: 11/30/2026, 05:00 AM
- Job Schedule: Full time
- Locations: Health Sciences Facility 425, Baltimore, Maryland, 21201, US
- Expected Salary: 63,480
- SOAPF: 155-10218000-000000-CVDDRIF1-210
- JobType: Regular
