Research Assistant in Functional Genomics of Sepsis

Applications are invited for a Research Assistant in Functional Genomics of Sepsis at the University of Oxford. You will be based at the Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics (WHG) within the group of Professor Julian Knight, joining an established team with a track record of innovation and high impact research in functional genomics, sepsis and susceptibility to multi-factorial disease.

This is an exciting new position funded through a new collaboration with the Danaher corporation and its subsidiary Cepheid. This research is part of the Beacon programme ‘Development and prospective evaluation of point-of-need test for sepsis subtyping based on gene expression using the Cepheid GeneXpert platform’. The programme seeks to advance precision medicine for patients with sepsis by developing a point-of-care test to stratify patients based on their immune response profiles. We aim to use an integrated approach which leverages the host transcriptome, immune profiling, and electronic health records, in combination with the GeneXpert system for mRNA quantification. Our goal is to deliver a precision medicine approach for managing patients with severe infections. The work is highly collaborative with clinical teams, company partners, and expert investigators across the UK, the US, and Sweden. You will facilitate exciting new collaborative links with Danaher, which may involve travel to Sweden (Cepheid) and the United States (Danaher).

You will be responsible for managing sample collections from recruited individuals through excellent team communication and record keeping skills. You will be supporting clinical phenotyping and related data management and working closely with the research nurse team and our collaborators in Danaher and Cepheid to ensure samples and data is shared in a timely and appropriate manner, and project milestones are met. You will be working as part of an interdisciplinary team, contribute fully to laboratory meetings and discussion of the aims and objectives of the group’s work.

It is essential that you hold a degree in biology, genetics, immunology, biochemistry, molecular biology or related field, together with demonstrable interest in the research described in the job description. You will have experience of patient blood or tissue sample processing in the laboratory and management of sample collections. Yu will have the ability to organise and prioritise work efficiently delivering results to required standard and to an agreed schedule and will be able to demonstrable high level of communication skills both written and oral.

Applications for this vacancy are to be made online and you will be required to upload a supporting statement and CV as part of your online application. Your supporting statement must explain how you meet each of the selection criteria for the post using examples of your skills and experience.

This position is offered full time on a fixed term contract until 1 October 2027 and is funded by the Danaher Corporation.

Only applications received before 12 midday on Tuesday 5 December 2023 will be considered. Please quote 169338 on all correspondence.

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