Research Fellow

The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) is one of the world’s leading public health universities. Our mission is to improve health and health equity in the UK and worldwide; working in partnership to achieve excellence in public and global health research, education and translation of knowledge into policy and practice.

We are seeking a Research Fellow to lead the bioinformatic analysis of transcriptomic, spatial transcriptomic, genomic, and metabolomic data in cutting-edge projects exploring host–pathogen interactions. The successful candidate will join a new ERC-funded research programme investigating the fundamental biology of Treponema pallidum, the causative agent of syphilis. Research on T. pallidum is particularly challenging because the bacterium depends on host cells for growth, complicating its cultivation in vitro and leaving many critical questions unanswered. This project aims to address these knowledge gaps by uncovering the organism’s distinctive biology and its interactions with the host. Ultimately, the research seeks to identify promising vaccine candidates, deepen our understanding of T. pallidum pathogenesis, and contribute to improved strategies for combating syphilis.

The successful candidate will have a postgraduate degree, ideally a doctoral degree, in a relevant topic, relevant experience in RNA-seq data analysis (host and/or pathogen), experience in, or a strong interest in, host - pathogen interaction and infection biology, a good understanding of how transcriptomic and spatial transcriptomic data are generated in the laboratory, and the ability to adjust analyses to account for potential wet-lab limitations. Further particulars are available in the job description.

The post is fixed term until 31 October 2028 and full-time, 35 hours per week, 1.0 FTE. The post is funded by the European Research Council (ERC) and is available immediately. 

The salary will be on the LSHTM scale, Grade 6 in the range £45,728 - £51,872 per annum pro rata (inclusive of London Weighting). The post will be subject to the LSHTM terms and conditions of service. Annual leave entitlement is 30 working days per year, pro rata for part time staff. In addition to this there are discretionary “Wellbeing Days”. Membership of the Pension Scheme is available. The post is based in London at LSHTM.

Applications should be made by clicking the 'Apply' button above. Online applications will be accepted by the automated system until 10pm of the closing date. Any queries regarding the application process may be addressed to jobs@lshtm.ac.uk. Please quote reference ITD-DIB-2026-16.

The supporting statement section should set out how your qualifications, experience and training meet each of the selection criteria. Please provide one or more paragraphs addressing each criterion. The supporting statement is an essential part of the selection process and thus a failure to provide this information will mean that the application will not be considered. An answer to any of the criteria such as "Please see attached CV" will not be considered acceptable. 

Please note that if you are shortlisted and are unable to attend on the interview date it may not be possible to offer you an alternative date.

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