- Job Title
- Research Scientist (Chemical Biology)
- Post Number
- 1003997
- Closing Date
- 3 Mar 2021
- Grade
- SC6
- Starting Salary
- £32,255 - £39,345
- Hours per week
- 37
- Expected/Ideal Start Date
- 01 Apr 2021
- Months Duration
- 36
Job Description
Main Purpose of the Job
An exciting opportunity is available for an outstanding Research Scientist to join the Whitchurch group at the Quadram Institute on the Norwich Research Park in the UK. The ultimate aim of the work is to understand alternate bacterial lifestyles (biofilms, cell wall deficiency, persisters) in order to develop interventions to benefit both human and animal health. This position is focused on utilising chemical biology and microbial genetic approaches.
The position will involve working with limited supervision to carry out individual and collaborative projects relevant to the overall needs of the research and development programme. The work will also involve supervision of staff and students and participation in general group management.
The project will exploit state of the art facilities for high throughput compound and mutant library screens, microbial genomics and advanced optical microscopy. The Quadram Institute Bioscience and the Whitchurch group will provide you with a stimulating, multidisciplinary training environment that will assist you in your successful scientific development.
Key Relationships
Internal: Line manager, group members and, as necessary, other researchers, research support staff and students across the Institute.
External: Academic collaborators and industry partners
Main Activities & Responsibilities
- Percentage
- Identify, plan, carry out and modify experiments to meet the objectives of the project
- 40
- Prepare results, reports and manuscripts for publication in leading scientific journals and other relevant media
- 10
- Collaborate with colleagues within the Institute in the development of original and world-class research, including contributing to research proposals and grant applications
- 10
- Liaise with industry and other external stakeholders
- 10
- Ensure research and record keeping is carried out in accordance with good practice, Scientific Integrity and in compliance with local policies and any legal requirements
- 10
- Disseminate research findings though presentations to various audiences at internal, national and international meetings
- 10
- As agreed with line manager, any other duties commensurate with the nature of the post
- 5
- Contribute to the smooth running of the group, including the effective use of resources, supervision of visitors to the laboratory and assisting with training others, encouraging scientific excellence
- 5
Person Profile
Education & Qualifications
- Requirement
- Importance
- PhD in microbiology, molecular biology, chemical biology, or biochemistry
- Essential
Specialist Knowledge & Skills
- Requirement
- Importance
- Hands-on experience with molecular microbiology and/or chemical biology techniques
- Essential
- Microbiology culture techniques
- Essential
- In-depth knowledge of cell-wall-deficient bacteria
- Desirable
- In-depth knowledge of bacterial biofilms
- Desirable
- In depth knowledge of bacterial cell wall biogenesis
- Desirable
- In-depth knowledge of antibiotic resistance mechanisms
- Desirable
- In-depth knowledge of microbial physiology
- Desirable
- TraDIS
- Desirable
- Bioinformatics
- Desirable
- RNAseq
- Desirable
- Antibiotic sensitivity testing
- Desirable
- Statistical analysis
- Desirable
- Management and interrogation of large data sets
- Desirable
- Optical microscopy
- Desirable
Relevant Experience
- Requirement
- Importance
- Demonstrated ability to perform research and develop novel ideas
- Essential
- Proven record in scientific writing
- Essential
- Experience of oral research presentations
- Essential
- Experience of supervising, training and mentoring visitors and students
- Essential
- Good publication record in peer reviewed scientific journals
- Essential
- Ability to work independently
- Essential
- Working with pathogenic bacteria and genetically modified organisms
- Desirable
- Working with Pseudomonas aeruginosa
- Desirable
- Microscopy of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells particularly high-resolution optical microscopy and using the imaging software packages Imaris and FIJI/Image J
- Desirable
- Working collaboratively with industry pharmaceutical partners
- Desirable
- Working collaboratively with other research groups
- Desirable
Interpersonal & Communication Skills
- Requirement
- Importance
- Excellent communication skills, both written and oral, including the ability to present complex information with clarity
- Essential
- Ability to collaborate with internal and external stakeholders
- Essential
- Ability to follow instructions/Standard Operating Procedures
- Essential
- Promotes and strives for continuous improvement
- Essential
- Good interpersonal skills, with the ability to work as part of a team
- Essential
- Demonstrated ability to work independently, using initiative and applying problem solving skills
- Essential
- Excellent time management and organisational skills
- Essential
Additional Requirements
- Requirement
- Importance
- Attention to detail
- Essential
- Promotes equality and values diversity
- Essential
- Willingness to embrace the expected values and behaviours of all staff at the Institute, ensuring it is a great place to work
- Essential
- Able to present a positive image of self and the Institute, promoting both the international reputation and public engagement aims of the Institute
- Essential
- Ability to maintain confidentiality and security of information where appropriate
- Essential
- Willingness to work outside standard working hours when required
- Essential
- Ability to undertake occasional travel (national and international) related to collaborations and/or seminars
- Essential
Who We Are
Quadram Institute Bioscience
The Quadram Institute is at the forefront of a new interface between food science, gut biology and health, developing solutions to worldwide challenges in food-related disease and human health.
We are engaged in fundamental and translational food and health research, alongside clinical studies, endoscopy and industry, working together to become a leading international hub for food and health research, combining scientific excellence and clinical expertise, delivering impacts on patient care and accelerating innovation.
The Quadram Institute is a diverse and multicultural scientific community. We thrive on our international and European links, appointing staff from across the world. Any candidate who would like further information on current or anticipated immigration requirements can contact the HR Team on +44 (0)1603 450888 or nbi.recruitment@nbi.ac.uk.
For more information about working at Quadram Institute Bioscience, please click here.
Department
Microbes in the Food Chain
Group Details
The Whitchurch group is interested in the fundamental characterisation of alternate bacterial lifestyles, including biofilms, cell wall deficiency, and persisters, and in understanding how these contribute to bacterial survival, human and animal health, and antimicrobial resistance. We have expertise in a range of techniques that we use to achieve our aims including molecular microbiology, microbial genetics, chemical genetics, infection models, high throughput screens, and advanced optical microscopy including super-resolution, live-cell, deconvolution, confocal and high content imaging.
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An exciting opportunity is available for an outstanding Research Scientist to join the Whitchurch group at Quadram Institute Bioscience on the Norwich Research Park in the UK, to contribute to fundamental research into bacterial lifestyles.
The role:
This project will use various chemical biology, molecular microbiology, microbial genetics and microscopy techniques to investigate alternate bacterial lifestyles (e.g. biofilms, cell wall deficiency, persisters) to understand their roles in the food chain, human health, and antimicrobial resistance.
The position will involve working with limited supervision to carry out individual and collaborative research projects relevant to the overall needs of the research programme. The work will also involve supervision of staff and students and general group management.
The project will exploit state of the art facilities for high throughput compound and mutant library screens, microbial genomics and advanced optical microscopy. The Quadram Institute Bioscience and the Whitchurch group will provide you with a stimulating, multidisciplinary training environment that will assist you in your successful scientific development.
The ideal candidate:
Candidates are expected to have a PhD in a relevant subject area (e.g. Microbiology, Molecular Biology, Chemical Biology or Biochemistry). They will have knowledge of and hands-on experience with molecular microbiology and/or chemical biology techniques. Knowledge and skills with quantitative image analysis, biofilm models and bioinformatics are also desirable.
Additional information:
Salary on appointment will be within the range £32,255 to £39,345 per annum depending on qualifications and experience. This post is a fulltime post for a period of three years.
We are committed to equal opportunities and welcome applications from all sectors of society. The Institute supports equality of opportunity within the workplace and expects all employees to share and display these values. To support our commitment, we have a range of family, faith and diversity friendly working arrangements to help all staff achieve excellence in their area of work.
As a Disability Confident employer, we guarantee to offer an interview to all disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for this vacancy.
About the Quadram Institute:
The Quadram Institute is a new interdisciplinary research institute dedicated to understanding how food and microbes interact to promote health and prevent disease. Its mission is to deliver healthier lives through innovation in gut health, microbiology and food. A partnership between Quadram Institute Bioscience, the University of East Anglia, the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital and BBSRC, it brings together scientists and clinicians in a state-of-the-art building on the Norwich Research Park. This is one of Europe’s largest centres of life sciences and home of the John Innes Centre and The Earlham Institute