10 Oct
University of Glasgow
Glasgow
Job details
Here’s how the job details align with your profile.
Pay
- £40,247 - £45,163 a year
Job type
- Full-time
Location
32 University Ave, Glasgow
Benefits
Pulled from the full job description
- Company pension
- UK visa sponsorship
Full job description
Job Purpose
The post holder will join the School of Infection and Immunity), MRC-University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research (CVR) (http://www.cvr.ac.uk/) and will make a leading contribution to a core-funded Research Programme at the CVR on Virus Cross Species Transmission, working with Professor Daniel Streicker and Professor Pablo Murcia.
The post holder will develop and validate quantitative models which seek to understand human and livestock susceptibility to novel viral infections. Main projects will include characterising and contrasting the ‘viral antibody landscape’ in ecologically connected wildlife, livestock and human populations, analyzing large host-virus genomic datasets to develop machine learning models predicting viral host range with a focus on domestic animals, and developing Bayesian and/or machine learning models to explain outcomes from a large panel of cross-neutralization assays to understand how antibodies derived from infection by or vaccination to related viruses might constitute a barrier to the emergence of novel viruses. The successful candidate will also contribute to the in silico design of highly of multiplexed serological assays using Phage ImmunoPrecipitation Sequencing (PhIP-Seq) and to the design of cross-neutralization experiments using pseudotype viruses.
The successful candidate will also be expected to contribute to the formulation and submission of research publications and research proposals as well as help manage and direct the project as opportunities allow.
Main Duties and Responsibilities
Perform the following activities in conjunction with and under the guidance of the Principal Investigators, Daniel Streicker and Pablo Murcia:
1. Plan and conduct assigned research individually or jointly in accordance with the project deliverables and project/group/School/College research strategy.
2. Use public and internal viral genome sequences to design a PhIP Seq panel for detection of antibodies against focal viral families and species in banked or prospectively collected serum samples from bats, livestock and humans and carry out descriptive analyses of the resulting data
3.
Use the results of phylogenetically-informed pseudotype virus neutralization assays and viral genomic/protein/structural data to develop predictive models of cross-protection for selected high-risk families of RNA viruses
4. Develop machine learning algorithms to predict human and livestock susceptibility to RNA virus infection from viral genomic/protein/structural data and libraries of host gene transcripts, including known or predicted interferon stimulated genes.
5. Work with other project members to set appropriate timelines given progress of field, clinical and laboratory activities.
6. Liaise with national and international partners to ensure data quality and equitable intellectual engagement opportunities.
7. Document and manage research outputs, including analysis and interpretation of all data,
maintaining records and databases, drafting technical/progress reports and papers as appropriate.
8. Establish and maintain a research profile and reputation, as well as that of the research team, by securing a track record of publications of international quality in high profile/quality refereed journals, enhancing the research impact in terms of economic/societal benefit, and gathering indicators of esteem.
9. Presentation of work at international and national conferences, at internal and external seminars, colloquia and workshops to develop and enhance our research profile.
10.
Take a leading role in the identification of potential funding sources and to assist in the development of proposals to secure funding from internal and external bodies to support future research.
11. Collaborate with colleagues and take the lead in team/group meetings/seminars/workshops across the research Group/School/College/University and wider community to enhance the wider knowledge, outputs and culture of the CVR.
12. Take the lead in the organisation, supervision, mentoring and training of undergraduate and/or postgraduate students and less experienced members of the project team to ensure their effective development.
13. Perform administrative tasks related to the activities of the research group and School, including Budgets/Expenditure/ordering, and contribute to laboratory management and general laboratory duties.
14. Make a leading contribution to teaching activities (e.g., demonstrating etc.)
as well as co-supervision of students rotating at the CVR. Carry out associated admin as assigned by the Head of School and in consultation with the Principal Investigator.
15. Keep up to date with current knowledge and recent advances in quantitative ecology/epidemiology, machine learning, and viral emergence. 15. Engage in personal, professional and career development to enhance both specialist and transferable skills in accordance with required career trajectory.
16. Undertake any other duties of equivalent standing as assigned by the MRC-CVR Director.
17. Contribute to the enhancement of the University’s international profile in line with the University’s Strategic Plan, World Changers Together.
Please note that as part of your application you must address and demonstrate how you meet EACH of the essential/desirable criteria.
Qualifications and Knowledge
Essential:
A1. Normally Scottish Credit and Qualification Framework level 12 [PhD] in ecology and evolution, epidemiology, another area of quantitative biology or equivalent, or alternatively possess the equivalent in professional qualifications and experience, with experience of personal development in a similar or related role(s).
A2. Specialist theoretical and practical knowledge of some quantitative areas of infectious disease ecology or evolution.
A3. A comprehensive and up-to-date knowledge of the wider subject area or subject specialism.
A4. Good understanding of statistical modelling and machine learning.
A5.
Knowledge in experimental design for research studies carried out in field or laboratory settings.
Skills
Essential:
C1. Excellent communication skills (oral and written), including public presentations and ability to communicate complex data/concepts clearly and concisely.
C2. Excellent interpersonal skills including team working in multidisciplinary groups and a collegiate approach.
C3. Appropriate workload/time/project/budget/people management skills.
C4. Database management skills sufficient to organize data from different sources and enable sharing among international partners.
C5. A comprehensive and up-to-date knowledge of current issues and future directions within the wider subject areas of emerging viruses.
Desirable:
D1. Experience conducting serological or molecular assays in the context of infectious disease.
D2. Quantitative training (statistics or mathematics) to postgraduate level or comparable skills from another discipline.
Experience
Essential:
E1. Sufficient depth of relevant research experience including sufficient postdoctoral experience in a related field.
E2. Proven ability to deliver quality outputs in a timely and efficient manner. E3 Evidence of an emerging track record of publications in a relevant field.
E4. Experience working with Next Generation Sequence data.
E5. Experience designing and/or analyzing results from Phage-Immunoprecipitation sequencing experiments.
E6. An established track record of presentation and publication of research results in quality journals/conferences.
E7. Experience of making a leading contribution in academic activities.
E8. Ability to demonstrate a degree of independence as illustrated by identification of project objectives from assessment of the literature, design and analysis of experiments and drafting of papers.
Desirable:
F1. Experience in feature engineering from genomic data for machine learning.
F2. An emerging national or international reputation.
Additional Information
The Streicker group (www.streickerlab.com) provides a cross-cutting environment for quantitative, field and laboratory-based research on virus and host ecology. We focus on understanding and preventing viral cross-species transmission. Research spans longitudinal field studies and experiments in wild bats in Latin America, viral phylogenomics and metagenomics, and comparative studies using machine learning, epidemiological modelling, and meta-analysis.
The Murcia group (https://www.gla.ac.uk/research/az/cvr/aboutus/people/researchgroups/murciagroup) is part of the MRC-University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research (CVR) and focuses on understanding the impact of virus-host-virus interactions at different scales (from virus particles to populations). Research combines experimental approaches such as in vitro infections, serological assays, with analysis of patient data and mathematical modelling.
This position is available on a full-time basis and is funded until 31st March 2028.
Informal enquiries regarding this post may be directed to Prof Daniel Streicker ([email protected]).
Terms and Conditions
Salary will be Grade 7, £40,247 - £45,163 per annum.
This post is full time, and has funding for until 31/03/2028
As part of Team UofG you will be a member of a world changing, inclusive community, which values ambition, excellence, integrity and curiosity.
The University of Glasgow has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK. If you require a Skilled Worker visa to work in the UK, you will be required to meet the eligibility requirements of the visa route to be assigned a Certificate of Sponsorship.
Please note that this post may be eligible to be sponsored under the Skilled Worker visa route if tradeable points can be used under the Skilled Worker visa rules. For more information please visit: https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa.
As a valued member of our team, you can expect:
1 A warm welcoming and engaging organisational culture, where your talents are developed and nurtured, and success is celebrated and shared.
2 An excellent employment package with generous terms and conditions including 41 days of leave for full time staff, pension - pensions handbook https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/payandpensions/pensions/, benefits and discount packages.
3 A flexible approach to working.
4 A commitment to support your health and wellbeing, including a free 6-month UofG Sport membership for all new staff joining the University https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/staff/healthwellbeing/.
We believe that we can only reach our full potential through the talents of all. Equality, diversity and inclusion are at the heart of our values. Applications are particularly welcome from across our communities and in particular people from the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) community, and other protected characteristics who are under-represented within the University. Read more on how the University promotes and embeds all aspects of equality and diversity within our community https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/humanresources/equalitydiversity/.
We endorse the principles of Athena Swan https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/humanresources/equalitydiversity/athenaswan/ and hold bronze, silver and gold awards across the University.
We are investing in our organisation, and we will invest in you too. Please visit our website https://www.gla.ac.uk/explore/jobs/ for more information.
▶️ Research Associate
🖊️ University of Glasgow
📍 Glasgow