WELLCOME TRUST SANGER INSTITUTE
POST: Postdoctoral Fellow: Genetics of Immunity
SALARY RANGE: £28,280 to £34,778 per annum dependent on experience. This position is fixed-term for 3 years.
CLOSING DATE: 31 December 2011.
Dr. Jeffrey Barrett's group at the Sanger Institute is looking for a Postdoctoral Fellow to lead a research project on the genetics of auto-immune, inflammatory, and infectious diseases, beginning with analysis of genome-wide association studies of:
1. 2000 cases of sickle cell disease with detailed quantitative phenotypes (collaboration with Julie Makani, Dar es Salaam)
2. Over 10,000 cases of severe malaria from the MalariaGEN consortium (collaboration with Dominic Kwiatkowski and Chris Spencer, Oxford)
3. 5000 cases of Tuberculosis infection in Russia (collaboration with Sergey Nejentsev, Cambridge)
4. 1000 cases of HIV infection in Africa (collaboration with Fred Vannberg and Manj Sandhu)
All of these studies are among the largest genetic studies of these diseases in the world, and their analysis will be integrated into the group's ongoing work on the genetics of auto-immune and inflammatory diseases in European samples. The project aims to explore models of risk variants across this spectrum of diseases in order to better understand their shared and distinct biology.
The fellow would then have scope to further develop the project in one of two ways dependent on their interest and experience. In either case they would have access to the additional strengths of the Sanger Institute in statistical genetics and functional biology:
1. More detailed statistical analysis of these data, for instance via Bayesian model comparisons or development of association tests which account for the substantial genetic heterogeneity in African populations.
2. Functional follow-up for genes identified via GWAS, e.g. gene expression in relevant white blood cell types, or collaboration with the mouse knockout and pathogen challenge labs at Sanger to directly test hypotheses about genetic function in infection.
The Sanger Institute is committed to capacity building for researchers at our partner institution in Africa, and the successful applicant would have the opportunity to spend time at collaborating sites to conduct research, help with training, and exchange expertise with local scientists. This role will require a committed researcher who enjoys scientific problem solving, and offers the opportunity for participation in both personally driven research and collaborative projects at the forefront of genomic science.
ESSENTIAL SKILLS
PhD in a relevant subject, such as molecular or statistical genetics, statistics, computer science, or medicine.
Significant practical experience with large-scale computational analysis.
Applied statistical knowledge.
Demonstrated track record in strong analytical skills, finding enjoyment and satisfaction in solving difficult problems.
Proven ability to work independently.
Effective written and oral communication and proven ability to work in a collaborative environment.
Established publication track record.
Demonstrable experience with scripting or programming (e.g. R, Perl, Python).
IDEAL SKILLS
Experience in human genetics, especially work on immunity-mediated disease.
Experience working with large scale GWAS and/or next-generation sequence datasets.
Strong computer programming experience, including demonstrated aptitude with either scripting languages (e.g. Perl, Python) or compiled languages (e.g. C, Java).
OTHER INFORMATION
Postdoctoral Fellows are typically in their first or second postdoctoral position as part of a period of early career research training. Successful applicant(s) who have submitted their PhD thesis and are awaiting their PhD award to be confirmed will initially receive a salary of £26103 pa. On confirmation of their PhD award applicants will be moved on to the pay scale above.
The Barrett lab is focused on using next generation genomic technology, especially high throughput sequencing, to better understand the genetics of complex disease, especially auto-immune and infectious diseases.
The closing date for applications is 31 December 2011
FOR DETAILS, PLEASE REFER
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