VHIR-MSCA-PF-_Postdoctoral Fellowship; Biomedical Research in Melanoma

Offer Description

Understanding primary and adaptive tumour immune resistance

The Biomedical Melanoma Research Group at the Vall d'Hebron Research Institute (VHIR), Barcelona, invites expressions of interest from outstanding postdoctoral researchers interested in developing competitive applications for the next Marie Sklodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowships (MSCA-PF) and/or AECC Talent postdoctoral calls.

The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowships (MSCA-PF) are part of the Horizon Europe programme and support postdoctoral researchers in developing an original research and innovation project through international mobility.

The programme aims to strengthen researchers’ careers through excellent science, international collaboration and interdisciplinary experience, while fostering integration in both academic and non-academic environments. The MSCA-PF call is highly competitive and represents an excellent opportunity to attract international talent and support researchers in consolidating their scientific careers through an ambitious mobility-based fellowship.

The 2026 call closes on 09/09/2026 (17:00 Brussels time). For candidates applying to a European Postdoctoral Fellowship, the fellowship duration is from 12 to 24 months
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Cancer immunotherapy has reshaped the treatment landscape for multiple cancers, offering long-lasting clinical benefit to some patients. However, a large proportion of tumours remain unresponsive or eventually acquire resistance, revealing a major gap in our understanding of how cancer cells communicate with and manipulate the immune system. Increasing evidence suggests that stress-signalling pathways within tumour cells can profoundly influence immune surveillance, inflammation, and the composition of the tumour microenvironment.

In this context, p38α emerges as a compelling molecular hub linking tumour adaptation, immune suppression, and therapeutic response.

Objective

The proposed project will investigate how tumour cell–intrinsic p38α controls immune evasion and shapes the tumour microenvironment in the context of resistance to immune checkpoint blockade. Despite major advances in cancer immunotherapy, the mechanisms driving primary and acquired resistance remain insufficiently understood. Recent findings indicate that p38α regulates the expression of immune checkpoint molecules and promotes an immunosuppressive microenvironment by enhancing macrophage and myeloid-derived suppressor cell activity while limiting CD8+ T-cell and NK-cell cytotoxicity;

importantly, pharmacological inhibition of p38α synergises with PD-1 blockade to induce durable tumour regressions in vivo. The successful candidate will define the transcriptional and post-transcriptional programs controlled by p38α, identify the immune cell populations first affected by tumour-derived p38α signalling, and determine how these interactions remodel the TME. This project aims to uncover actionable mechanisms of immunotherapy resistance and support the rational development of combination treatments, including strategies to select patients most likely to benefit from p38α inhibition plus immune checkpoint therapy.

Our Group

Our group focuses on skin cancer, investigating the molecular mechanisms that drive disease to design effective therapies. We work in close proximity to patients so that discoveries can be translated to the clinic as rapidly as possible. Accordingly, we are a multidisciplinary team that brings together dermatologists, oncologists, pathologists and basic scientists who jointly define clinically relevant questions and generate the biological answers needed to address them.

Our workflow integrates patient-derived information (tumour deep sequencing, immunohistochemistry, clinical history, etc.) and transfers these data into animal models and in-vitro systems. Experimental results guide the development of new therapeutic strategies and preclinical studies that, in turn, inform clinical implementation.

Main responsibilities and duties:

• Fellowship development at the interface of basic, translational, and clinically relevant cancer research.
• Develop a high-impact project supported by complementary…