Research Associate - Immunology

Job description

As a research associate, the post holder will be required to provide high level intellectual and technical support to the experimental work being undertaken on project(s) under the supervision of Dr Sheeba Irshad.  Dr Sheeba Irshad is a medical oncologist with an interest in investigating the antigenic drivers of immune response in chemotherapy resistant breast cancers. Laboratory work will take place in Dr Irshad’s laboratory within the school of cancer and pharmaceutical sciences, Innovation Hub laboratories This post holder will work closely with colleagues working with the Breast Cancer Now Research Centre at the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR, Prof Andrew Tutt’s team) working alongside other wet lab, in-vivo, histopathology and bioinformatics teams.   

The candidate will be expected to take direct responsibility of specific research projects by providing original intellectual input, research project management and assist in preparation of manuscripts of the experimental work. The post holder will be proficient in cell culture, cell function assays, protein assays (e.g. ELISA, western blot) and multi-colour flow cytometry. The post holder will receive relevant supervision and training in specialized assays and will meet with his/her line manager on a regular basis to review results and plan experiments.  Equally, once established, the post holder should be able to work independently without the requirement of day to day supervision.

The post holder is encouraged to contribute to the design and execution of experiments under the supervision of a clinician scientist.  In addition, the post holder is expected to establish and maintain a collaborative working relationship both internally and externally. Where appropriate, the post holder should provide specialized laboratory skills training to junior staff.    The post will be based in the innovation hub at the Guy’s Hospital Campus, and will involve interaction with colleagues within the Breast Cancer Now Research Unit at the Kings College London and the Breast Cancer Now Research Centre at the Institute of Cancer Research, London.  

This post will be offered on an a fixed-term contract for 2 years  

This is a full-time post - 100% full time equivalent

Key responsibilities

•         To carry out research on defined, funded projects

•         To develop and refine experimental strategies

•         To ensure the validity and reliability of data at all times

•         To analyse and summarise research results and write reports and manuscripts

•         To support and advise other projects in the lab

•         To discuss experimental details, research projects and new articles with lab members

•         To be involved in weekly laboratory meetings

•         To attend research seminars and other meetings, both internal and external, as required

•         To present research results at meetings and conferences

•         To prepare and present findings of research activity to colleagues for review purposes

•         To contribute to, draft and submit papers to appropriate peer reviewed journals

•         To prepare progress reports on research for funding bodies as required

•         To contribute to the preparation and drafting of research bids and proposals

•         To contribute to the overall activities of the research team and department as required

Skills, knowledge, and experience 

Essential criteria

1.       PhD awarded in cancer immunology or similar  

2.       Experience in high dimensionalFLOW  and Mass cytometry (CyTOF)  

3.       Knowledge of in-vitro immunological assays including 3 dimensional tumour-immune co-cultures 

4.       Knowledge of relevant imaging platforms (e.g. multiphoton microscopy) and techniques  

5.       Indepth understanding of cancer immunology and immunotherapy 

6.       Interest in the field of translation cancer research 

7.       Experience in working in multidisciplinary teams  

8.       Experience of tissue culture 

9.       Strong problem solving abilities 

10.   An independent and innovative thinker 

Desirable criteria

1.       Experience in the study and analysis of components of the immune system such as innate lymphoid cells, natural killer cells, monocyte/macrophage, and T regulatory cells 

2.       Basic knowledge of 3D imaging techniques and data analysis (R)  

3.       Track record of publishing in cancer immunology, immunotherapy and tumour microenvironment as well as abstracts and presentations at national and international level.  

Please note that this is a PhD level role but candidates who have submitted their thesis and are awaiting award of their PhDs will be considered. In these circumstances the appointment will be made at Grade 5, spine point 30 with the title of Research Assistant. Upon confirmation of the award of the PhD, the job title will become Research Associate and the salary will increase to Grade 6.