Researcher – Cell Assay Development (Imaging) for OligoNova Hub

Ref PAR 2022/813

The University of Gothenburg tackles society’s challenges with diverse knowledge. 56 000 students and 6 600 employees make the university a large and inspiring place to work and study. Strong research and attractive study programmes attract scientists and students from around the world. With new knowledge and new perspectives, the University contributes to a better future.

OligoNova Hub is a national research infrastructure that provides academic researchers in Sweden with support and capabilities to transform ideas and discoveries into new oligonucleotide therapies. The Hub is located within the vibrant biotech cluster at the AstraZeneca BioVentureHub in Mölndal. OligoNova Hub is organized within the Core Facilities at the University of Gothenburg (www.cf.gu.se), and is also part of the Science for Life Laboratory Drug Discovery and Development platform (https://www.scilifelab.se/units/ddd-platform/ ), a national resource comprising 50+ scientists with complementary expertise in drug discovery.

This is an exciting opportunity to develop state-of-the-art cell-based assays, and use these assays in screening, analysis of cellular uptake and trafficking, and mechanism-of-action studies for therapeutic oligonucleotides to support our discovery projects.

Duties 

As researcher in the cell biology team at OligoNova Hub, you are responsible for the evaluation of the pharmacological and toxicological effects of therapeutic oligonucleotides that are developed at OligoNova Hub. In your role, you develop and use different cell-based models (cell lines and primary cells, cultured in 2D as well as 3D formats) and study the effects of therapeutic oligonucleotides using various state-of-the-art methods, such as advanced microscopy, HTS profiling in fluorometric assays, qPCR, RNA sequencing and mass spectrometry. You also contribute to project management and communication with internal and external partners.

Qualifications 

Essential qualifications:

• Candidates must have a Ph.D. degree or equivalent experience in a relevant scientific field of biology, biotechnology, biophysics, engineering or similar.
• Experience working with a wide range of cell types, including both primary cells and cell lines is a must.
• Previous working experience in a range of cell biology techniques including transfection methods/gene expression manipulations (e.g., siRNAi or ASOs), qPCR and Western-blotting is a must.
• Hands-on experience with cell-based functional assays is a must.

Highly desirable for this role:

• Extensive experience with advanced microscopy (including live cell microscopy), image analysis or coding/programming knowledge is highly meriting.
• Hands-on expertise of developing processes and applying high-throughput automation/robotics to cell culture and molecular biology methodologies is a strong merit.
• Flow cytometry/sorting experience is beneficial.
• Hands-on lab-based experience with RNA extraction from cells and a broad range of transcriptomics technologies that can include RNA-seq and single-cell sequencing is desired.
• Experience with integrating automation processes on different instruments with each other and multiplexing towards 3+ transcripts quantification are attractive skills.
• Experience with cells grown in 3D cultures and organoids is meriting.
• Solid knowledge in the area of oligonucleotides, including mechanisms driving cellular uptake and activity, and pharmacological, toxicological and pharmacokinetic mechanisms relevant for therapeutic oligonucleotides is meriting.
  

Great emphasis is placed on personal suitability, good communication and interpersonal skills. You should be able to work independently as well as part of a team. You should be self-motivated and service-minded and have a positive, result-oriented and problem-solving attitude. You should have excellent written and oral communication skills in English.

Employment 

The position is a full-time, permanent position (100%), placed at OligoNova Hub within the Core Units at the University of Gothenburg. A probationary employment period of 6 months may be applied. Start date as soon as possible based on agreement.