Research Associate

Job reference: BMH-031725
Salary: £37,694 - £38,784 per annum depending on relevant experience
Faculty/Organisational Unit: Biology, Medicine Health
Location: Oxford Road
Employment type: Fixed Term
Division/Team: Division of Musculoskeletal and Dermatological Science
Hours Per Week: Full time (1.0 FTE)
Closing date (DD/MM/YYYY): 13/07/2026
Contract Duration: Fixed term for 19 months
School/Directorate: School of Biological Sciences

We are seeking a motivated and collaborative individual to join our team as a Research Associate. This role offers an exciting opportunity to work closely with a research team working on a Medical Research Council (MRC) funded project which aims to characterize non-coding regions of the genome that confer risk to osteoarthritis (OA) using functional genomics, within a dynamic and inclusive environment.

You will be responsible for:

• To carry out an array of laboratory based functional genomics experiments in human cell lines and primary cells, including Hi-C, CUT&RUN, ATAC-Seq, RNA-Seq, CRISPR/Cas9, single cell RNA-seq.
• To collect and process human samples.
• Design experiments and analyse the data using appropriate bioinformatic techniques.
• Be competent in a range of laboratory epigenetic/molecular biology techniques.

About You

We encourage applications from individuals with a wide range of backgrounds and experiences. You should demonstrate:

Essential Criteria:

• Hold, or be about to obtain, a PhD in functional genomics.
• Strong background and theoretical knowledge of functional genomics, epigenetics and regulation of gene expression.
• Excellent knowledge of the genetics of osteoarthritis.
• Experience in patient recruitment, and blood and joint sample processing (cartilage, synovium).

Desirable Criteria:

• Experience in single cell RNA-seq.
• Experience of analysing genomic data including RNA-Seq.
• Knowledge of public resources of human epigenomic data, e.g. Roadmap, Blueprint, Encode.

Our benefits include:

• Generous employer contribution pension
• 29 days annual leave plus bank holidays, along with Christmas closure
• Ride to work and EV car scheme available

For more information, please see University of Manchester Benefits. You can also find information on our Flexible and Hybrid working here.

We are an open place of enquiry and challenge. We embrace and celebrate difference, diversity and debate, and we pride ourselves on being a place of education, learning and community where we are able, within the law, to question and test received wisdom, express new ideas and explore controversial or unpopular topics and opinions. Find out more from our Freedom of Speech Policy.

Enquiries about the role, shortlisting and interviews

Name: Gisela Orozco

Email: gisela.orozco@manchester.ac.uk

General enquiries and administrative support

recruitmentservices.people@manchester.ac.uk

Technical and job portal support

https://jobseekersupport.jobtrain.co.uk/support/home

Applications close at midnight on the closing date.

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