UCL INSTITUTE OF OPHTHALMOLOGY
Research Associate
REF: 1526071
UCL INSTITUTE OF OPHTHALMOLOGY
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON (UCL)
JOB DESCRIPTION Job Title: Research Associate
Research Department: Department of Cell Biology UCL Institute of Ophthalmology 11-43 Bath Street London EC1V 9EL
Reports to Maria S. Balda and Karl Matter
Grade & Salary: 7, £33,686 inclusive of London Allowance
Hours of work: Full-time (36.5 hours per week)
Period of appointment: 36 months in the first instance
The project
The project is funded by the BBSRC and is part of a research programme focusing to understand the role of tight junction proteins in vivo during mouse development and disease. The aim is to analyse the function of a tight junction associated protein and to identify its signalling components and pathways in vivo in mouse and in vitro in tissue culture models of different types of cells as needed. The task will be to design and perform experiments, to collect and to analyse the data. The project will involve a combination of different in vivo and in vitro approaches and techniques such as biochemical methods, molecular and cell biological assays, cell-based assays, in vitro epithelial models, as well as live cell, confocal, and electron microscopy.
1. The Role
The postholder will be part of a research team whose members will have to interact closely with each other as well as with other members of the research groups of Maria S. Balda, Karl Matter and Marcus Fruttiger.
The postholder will have considerable input into project direction and experimental design not only by applying in vivo and in vitro molecular and cellular techniques but also in designing, the planning of experiments and data collection and analyses. He/she will also coordinate the management of the collected data to elucidate how knockout of a given tight junction protein affects early embryonic mouse development. In addition he/she will complement these data with RNA interference of the same and interacting proteins in primary cell culture models to complement and expand each of the obtained observations.
The postholder will be responsible to record the data daily in laboratory notebooks and to summarise data for regular reports and meetings with the laboratory heads and other team members. Data summaries are required to include records of backups and association with primary data.
2 Reports consist of regular meetings to discuss on-going experiments, summaries of data, as well as presentations at team meetings.
2. Main Duties & Responsibilities
The postholder will
have considerable input into project direction and experimental design. will keep up with knowledge of the past and current literature in the field of tight junctions, signalling triggered by cell adhesion in vivo, and in vitro culture models. use developmental biology and biochemical techniques for protein analysis and to study protein-protein interactions to identify signalling complex composition and pathways involved perform mouse breeding and genotyping for maintenance of the different required colonies (constitutive and inducible knockouts, general knockouts, endothelial or epithelial specific knockouts depending on the progress of the project) plan time-specific mouse mating for isolation of embryos of specific stages for genotyping, phenotypical analysis and characterisation by different types of techniques including stereo microscopy, immunocytochemistry, immunofluorescence, in situ hybridisation, as well as ex vivo culture if needed etc. perform quantitative biochemical and cell-based assays using tissue culture cell lines, primary cells as well as mouse cells and tissue perform tissue culture, transfections using primary cells lines and if possible to generate stable cell lines maintain different types of mouse embryos, cell cultures as well bacterial cultures at different levels of the project construct and prepare cDNAs and plasmids, perform epitope tagging and site-directed mutagenesis analyse FRET activities for cell-cell tension, paracellular permeability, cell proliferation, etc, for general functional assessment of pathways involved analyse promoter activities for general functional assessment of transcriptional pathways involved perform live cell microscopy perform confocal light microscopy organize the data of the project and maintain a laboratory notebook detailing techniques used and conditions of experiments, obtained data and conclusions. Records are required to be updated on a daily basis, following the Data management plan approved by BBSRC and UCL.
3 prepare reports and data summaries regularly with clear links to primary research data used, and make summaries and primary data available to supervisors and, if required, collaborators. participate in laboratory meetings, journal clubs as well as joint meetings within the Institute and any interest group for discussion that will facilitate project progress. achieve goals agreed during discussions with the principal investigators independently and efficiently. To make this more effective the post holder must send a short e-mail after each meeting with a summary of aims agreed, expected delivery day and any specific support required to fulfil a given aim. be proactive and collaborate as an effective member of the team towards specific project goals and towards the goals of the other team members present the results of the project in national and international meetings prepare the results of the project for publication including writing specific project articles and other texts such methods or review articles carry out any other duties as are within the scope, spirit and purpose of the job, the title of the post and its grading as requested by the supervisors and head of department. support the supervisors in running the laboratory and maintaining a safe working environment. support supervisors in training of graduate and undergraduate students.
3. Person Specification
Requirements Criteria Assesse E / D* d A / I* 1. Education, Qualifications and Training PhD in a developmental biology discipline E A Training in developmental as well as cell and molecular EA biology 2. Skills, Ability Good knowledge and competence in developmental, EA molecular and cell biological techniques including mouse work and fluorescent microscopy Ability to lead a research project with considerable EA degree of independence Ability to perform quantitative assays and to analyse EA experimental data and write routines to control experimental setups 3. Experience
4 Previous research experience in developmental, EA molecular and cellular biology including mouse work, recombinant DNA techniques, transfections, basic biochemical techniques to analyse protein interactions and activities Previous research experience in light microscopy: live EA cell fluorescent imaging, confocal microscopy Experience with scanning and/or transmission electron DA microscopy Experience with the analysis of signalling pathways E A/I during mouse development or disease as well as in vitro cell culture models of primary cells Experience in quantitative and computational analysis of E A/I mouse, cell and protein function Experience with RNAi and 3D morphogenesis assays, DA such as angiogenesis in vivo and in vitro Experience with modern computer technology, including E A/I MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Adobe Photoshop Experience in designing experiments and data E A/I management
Evidence of productivity proportionate to previous E A/I research experience 4. Knowledge Good molecular, cellular and developmental biology E A/I knowledge Mouse analysis and basic biochemistry knowledge E A/I 5. Personal qualities Ability to undertake research work enthusiastically and E A/I accurately without supervision Ability to ask questions, to be focused and understand E A/I the big picture, to be proactive and self motivated, and to be a critical thinker Ability to work collaboratively and as part of a team E A/I Ability to build positive working relationships and to E A/I resolve conflicts that arise in a confident, respectful and positive manner Ability to communicate effectively to supervisors, team E A/I members and collaborators outside the institute Ability to follow instructions accurately E A/I Ability to keep accurate records E A/I Commitment to learn and readily master new E A/I techniques and to maintain a good knowledge of the published literature in the field of research as well as of
5 cell and developmental biology in general Commitment to high quality research, good track record E A/I of experimental details and ability of writing and publishing scientific articles Commitment to UCL’s policy of equal opportunity and E A/I the ability to work harmoniously with colleagues and students of all cultures and backgrounds
* E = Essential; D = Desirable; A = Application; I = Interview
3. Conditions of Appointment
Appointment
The post is graded as Grade 7. Starting salary will be on spine point 29 (£33,686 ), including London Allowance. Cost of living pay awards are negotiated nationally and are normally effective from 1st August each year. Incremental rises are effective 1 August each year if applicable. Funds are available for 36 months in the first instance.
Award of PhD
As a PhD is one of the essential requirements for this post. The appointee must have been awarded this qualification in order to be appointed on UCL Grade 7. If the appointee is awaiting the award of this qualification they will initially be appointed on Grade 6B. Once the PhD has been awarded the appointee will be promoted to grade 7 and this will be backdated to the date the PhD thesis was finally submitted (including corrections).
Location
Employees of the Institute normally work at the Institute's main location in 11 - 43 Bath Street, London EC1V 9EL. Some members of staff may also be located within Moorfields Eye Hospital, City Road, London EC1V 2PD. The Institute reserves the right to re-locate staff between the above two organisations. Occasionally, staff may be required to work at other locations; this will be subject to discussion between the member of staff and the Institute.
For details of the terms and conditions for this post see the following link: http://www.ucl.ac.uk/hr/salary_scales/Support_Research_tcs.php
Equal Opportunities
Our policy includes the provision that in recruitment, the only consideration must be that the individual meets or is likely to meet the genuine requirements of the job. No one will be discriminated against on the basis of gender, age, race, colour, ethnic
6 origin, physical disability, marital status, sexual orientation, caring or parental responsibilities, or belief in any matters including religion and politics.
General Information:
Please note that, within reason, the duties and role of the post-holder may be changed after appropriate consultation in response to changing organisational requirements. The post-holder will be eligible to join a contributory occupational pension scheme. All staff must maintain an awareness and observation of Fire and Health & Safety Regulations. They should actively follow all UCL policies including Equal Opportunities, attend staff meetings and undertake such training as is required by the post.
For further information about the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, please visit our website at http://www.ucl.ac.uk/ioo/
Details of how to apply for the post
Applications can be made online at the following link: http://www.ucl.ac.uk/hr/jobs
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON (UCL) http://www.ucl.ac.uk
UCL is one of the UK’s premier universities. It is a world-class research and teaching institution based in London whose staff and former students have included 29 Nobel Prize winners. Founded in 1826, it was the only university in England at that time which admitted students regardless of race or religion. UCL was also the first to admit women on equal terms with men. Today UCL is a friendly university in which to work and study and it continues to thrive on the diversity and creativity of its community.
The UCL community
UCL’s annual turnover was over £1bn in the latest financial year and it employs nearly 12,000 staff. In total, there are 70 Academic Departments and Institutes whose activities span the following: arts and humanities, social and historical sciences, law, architecture and the built environment, engineering, mathematical and physical sciences, life and clinical sciences, and medicine. UCL’s academic and research staff are a truly international community with a third coming from 84 countries outside the UK.
UCL has nearly 36,000 students from over 150 countries. 52% of the students are engaged in graduate studies, with nearly a third of these graduate students pursuing research degrees.
7 UCL’s academic community includes 53 Fellows of the Royal Society, 51 Fellows of the British Academy, 15 Fellows of the Royal Academy of Engineering and 117 Fellows of the Academy of Medical Sciences.
Quality of UCL’s teaching and research
UCL is consistently rated among the top four universities in the UK (together with Cambridge, Imperial College and Oxford) and in the 20 best universities in the world.
In the UK’s latest UK Research Assessment Exercise (REF2014), UCL came second overall behind Oxford but ahead of Cambridge (based on the percentage of work rated 4*, or “world leading”, multiplied by the number of staff submitted). When looking at the share of both 4* and 3* (“internationally excellent”) work, UCL comes on top. In the unit of assessment covering Psychology, Psychiatry & Neuroscience, UCL was the top-rated university on both measures of power by a long way. Similarly UCL came top in Clinical Medicine and for the overarching Panel A covering the Life, Medical and Healthcare Sciences disciplines.
For more information about UCL’s REF2014 results, including case studies highlighting the real-world impact of its research, see www.ucl.ac.uk/ref2014.
According to independent analysis, UCL also won the largest funding allocation from UK Research Councils in 2013 (£135m), and it has the greatest number of prestigious Doctoral Training Centres.
UCL attracts the third highest number of academic citations per faculty member in the UK (QS 2013), and UCL research in Neuroscience and Behaviour is ranked second in the world using Thomson Reuters ISI Essential Science Indicators.
UCL has the best academic to student ratio in the UK (1:10), enabling small class sizes and outstanding individual support (Times 2013); and it is one of the top two UK universities for the number of professors, which means that our students are taught by the most highly qualified experts in their field (Higher Education Statistics Agency 2011).
UCL School of Life and Medical Sciences (SLMS; http://www.ucl.ac.uk/slms/) brings together four UCL Faculties to create one of the largest and most prestigious aggregations of academics in biomedical, life and population health sciences. The School has a global reputation for teaching informed by cutting-edge research. A full profile of the School can be found at: http://www.ucl.ac.uk/slms/about-us.
In 2011, SLMS was restructured into the Faculties of (i) Brain Sciences (ii) Life Sciences (iii) Medical Sciences and (iv) Population Health Sciences. These structural changes have further enhanced the exceptionally strong base of research and teaching in biomedicine at UCL. In addition to its Faculties, the School also coordinates nine Research Domains (http://www.ucl.ac.uk/slms/domains) which are informal networks that bring together researchers regardless of their host Faculty. Colleagues engage in as many of the domains as are relevant to their area of research activity, encouraging interdisciplinarity across our School and beyond.
8 UCL Faculty of Brain Sciences (https://www.ucl.ac.uk/brain-sciences/) undertakes world-leading research and teaching in neurology and neural pathways, neuroscience, psychiatry, psychology, language, cognition and the sensory systems responsible for speech, hearing and vision. It takes an integrative approach to the study of mind and brain by focusing on the determinants of human perception, cognition, emotion and behaviour.
We are recognised as world leaders in our fields and our work attracts staff and students from around the globe. UCL neuroscience has the highest level of ISI citations in Europe, and is ranked second worldwide (behind Harvard), in the field of neuroscience and behavior. According to the latest National Student Survey (2014), 97% of the Faculty’s final year undergraduates were satisfied with their course, the highest overall rate at UCL. Our graduates are also highly employable, with 90% of our undergraduates in work or further study six months after graduation, and 89% of Masters students and 96% of PhD students in graduate employment (DLHE survey 2013).
The Faculty of Brain Sciences comprises: UCL Institute of Neurology (Queen Square, WC1) http://www.ucl.ac.uk/ion/ UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience (WC1) http://www.icn.ucl.ac.uk/ UCL Institute of Ophthalmology (Bath Street, EC1) http://www.ucl.ac.uk/ioo/ UCL Ear Institute (Gray’s Inn Road, WC1) http://www.ucl.ac.uk/ear/ UCL Division of Psychology & Language Sciences (WC1) http://www.ucl.ac.uk/psychlangsci/ UCL Division of Psychiatry (Riding House Street, WC1) http://www.ucl.ac.uk/psychiatry/
UCL Institute of Ophthalmology
The Institute of Ophthalmology is one of a number of specialised biomedical research centres within UCL and is, together with Moorfields Eye Hospital, world’s leading centres for eye health, vision research and training.
UCL Institute of Ophthalmology conducts cutting-edge science, attracting research workers of the highest international calibre. In recognition of the Institute’s international standing, the most recent HEFCE (Higher Education Funding Council for England) Research Assessment Exercise confirmed the outstanding quality of research carried out at the Institute. The Institute also received highest possible ratings in the previous three Research Assessment Exercises.
The researcher of tomorrow is critical to our goal of improving sight. To this end, we are involved in graduate training of research students (MD, MPhil, PhD) and our
9 contributions to UCL undergraduate and taught graduate teaching are increasing year by year.
The Institute is committed to a multi-disciplinary research portfolio that furthers an understanding of the eye and visual system linked with clinical investigations targeted to specific problems in the prevention and treatment of eye disease. The combination of the Institute’s research resource with the resources of Moorfields Eye Hospital, which has the largest ophthalmic patient population in the Western World, opens the way for advances at the forefront of vision research and provides an unparalleled setting for research and training in ophthalmology.
IT facilities are available to all staff and the Institute has modern, well-equipped laboratories which cater for academic staff whose specialities fall within the remit of four Research Departments:
Cell Biology Genetics Ocular Biology and Therapeutics Visual Neuroscience
The Institute employs around 270 staff, has a budget of £25m and is located next to the City of London’s main financial district near Old Street Underground station, a short distance from Liverpool Street Rail station.
The Institute of Ophthalmology is taking a pro-active approach to promoting career development for female staff and students, such as careers events and seminars from inspirational female speakers. We have recently been awarded the Silver Athena SWAN award. See the following link for more information: http://www.ucl.ac.uk/silva/ioo/athena-swan
To find out more about our research and teaching visit http://www.ucl.ac.uk/ioo/
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