Research Scientist

Applications are invited for a Research Scientist to join the Laboratory of Prof Anthony Hall in the Research Faculty of the Earlham Institute, based in Norwich, UK.

Background:

Earlham Institute is a vibrant research institute with a strong skill base in genomics technologies and bioinformatics. We deliver programmes to improve food security, advance industrial biotechnology, and improve human health and well-being.

Anthony Hall’s Plant Genomics group at Earlham is a well-established group with an international research reputation. The group encourages a team science approach within an inclusive and supportive research environment. As part of the Cellular Genomics institute-wide programme, the candidate will join a multi-disciplinary team to analyse single-cell and spatial transcriptomic datasets. They will use these approaches to explore circadian clock function with single-cell resolution.

The position is a collaboration with The Locke group at The Sainsbury Laboratory, Cambridge University, which is investigating gene expression dynamics in microbial and plant systems.

The role:

This exciting position aims to develop novel bioinformatics pipelines that apply spatial transcriptomics approaches to investigate the genetic architecture of the clock at a single-cell resolution. These methods are at the forefront of cell genomics and will be deployed in both Arabidopsis and wheat.

As part of this position the post holder will:

• work collaboratively across the institute, together with researchers from the Iain Macaulay group. 
• be involved in analysing existing datasets and working with the Plant Cell Atlas initiative.
• analyse complex transcriptional datasets and collaborate with the Locke group at TSL, Cambridge to develop mathematical models describing the circadian clock.
• have the opportunity to work within the cross-institute programme Delivering Sustainable Wheat on decoding regulatory sequences and understanding transcriptional networks.
• have training in ML/AI approaches

Our ultimate aim is to use the clock as a model to investigate how complex regulatory networks work across multiple cell types and how cell state affects the clock. In addition to these roles, the post holder will have the opportunity to undertake co-supervision of PhD students within the group and develop management skills.

The ideal candidate:

We are looking for candidates with a PhD in computational or Plant Biology or closely related subject. They should have experience of applying computational biology and bioinformatics during their PhD studies, particularly to transcriptomic data analysis. It is important that this is evidenced in their application.

The ideal candidate will also be able to demonstrate experience of analysing single-cell RNA-seq data and should be a team player who enjoys working in a collaborative scientific environment. They should also have a broad knowledge of plant genomics, basic statistics, coding (expertise in R and/or python) and experience running bioinformatic workflows, potentially in an HPC environment. Experience of collaborating with other research groups and across disciplines would be advantageous. Whilst not essential, there will also be the opportunity for researchers to become involved with the experimental aspect of the project.

Additional information:

Salary on appointment will be within the range £35,300 to £43,750 per annum depending on qualifications and experience. This is a full-time post for a contract of 36 months.

Interviews will be held on 4^th July 2024.

For any enquiries, please contact Prof Anthony Hall on anthony.hall@earlham.ac.uk.

For further information and details of how to apply, please click on the ‘Apply’ button above or contact the Human Resources team on 01603 450814 or nbi.recruitment@nbi.ac.uk quoting reference 1004671. This role meets the criteria for a visa application, and we encourage all qualified candidates to apply.  Please contact the Human Resources Team if you have any questions regarding your application or visa options.

As a Disability Confident employer, we guarantee to offer an interview to all disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for this vacancy.