Researcher in Fish Immunology / Microscopy

Job Details

Applicants are invited to apply for a 3-years position as Researcher in Fish Immunology / Microscopy to be based at the Department of Biosciences of the  University of Oslo. This role contributes to the ERC-funded starting grant project “Fish-S.H.I.E.L.D.” starting on April 1st 2025, which aims to investigate the fish branchial cavity immune surveillance system and its importance for the fish defense against infectious diseases in aquaculture.

The successful applicant will join Julien Resseguier’s “Spatial Immunology & Nanomedicines” group and become a key member of the Comparative Immunology team at the Department of Biosciences.

The project “Fish-S.H.I.E.L.D.” builds on the recent discovery of a complex lymphoid organization in the fish branchial cavity, which includes the “Amphibranchial Lymphoid Tissues (ALT)” and the “Interbranchial Lymphoid Tissues (ILT)” in the gills, and the Nemausean Lymphoid organ (NELO), revealing the branchial cavity as an important region of the fish immune system.

https://www. science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adj0101 https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/immunology/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2021.769901/full  

The sustainability of aquaculture, important for our food security, is severely challenged by infectious diseases. Whereas the branchial cavity is particularly relevant for fish health and welfare in aquaculture, much remains to be done to understand its defense mechanisms. The main goal of the project is to characterize the newly discovered branchial cavity immune surveillance system to harness its potential against infectious diseases in aquaculture. The project objective will use the zebrafish model to 1) Characterize the gill lymphoid tissues and tonsil-like organ. 2) Decipher the rules of antigen sampling, 3) Characterize the developmental framework. 4) Study the involvements in immune responses to infection and vaccines. This will then serve as a guide for investigations in Atlantic salmon and other fish species relevant for aquaculture.

Requirements

Required qualifications:

• Applicants must hold a degree equivalent to a Norwegian doctoral degree in Fish Immunology, Cell Biology, Molecular Biology, or a related discipline. Doctoral dissertation must be submitted for evaluation by the closing date. Only applicants with an approved doctoral thesis and completed defence are eligible for appointment.  
• Fluent oral and written communication skills in English.
• Relevant experience working with zebrafish and fish immunology.
• Documented solid expertise in transcriptomic analysis, specifically Single-cell RNA sequencing.
• Proficiency in confocal microscopy, lightsheet microscopy, and image analysis.

Desired qualifications:

• The following qualifications will also count in the assessment of the applicants: 
  • Fish Biology, Fish Anatomy, Molecular Biology, Bioinformatics, Histology methods, and Statistics.
• Prior experience with Immunofluorescence, Cryosections, Whole-mount labeling, Sample clearing, Flow cytometry, Atlantic salmon.
• A certification to perform animal experiments (e.g. Felasa), good communication/representation skills, and grant writing skills are also desirable but not required.

Contact Information

Deadline  5th October 2026

Questions about the position

Julien Resseguier

Dr. julien.resseguier@ibv.uio.no