View Vacancy -- MRC Postdoctoral Research Scientist LMS - 2059

Overall purpose:

Research Programme

The main research focus of the Steroids and Metabolism group led by Prof Wiebke Arlt is the investigating of steroid biosynthesis and metabolism and their impact on human health and disease, with a specific focus on steroids and metabolic disease risk. We employ human-based ex vivo and in vivo physiology and experimental medicine approaches as well as steroid metabolome profiling by mass spectrometry in conjunction with exploration of the data space in conjunction with statistical and machine learning methods.

Purpose of Post

To investigate the relationship between the steroid metabolome, the global untargeted metabolome and clinical phenotype parameters in a large cohort of women with polycystic ovary syndrome, a common condition affecting 10% of Caucasians and 20% of South Asians that appears to be associated with an increased risk of metabolic disease.

You will be expected to carry out research within the focus area of the Steroids and Metabolism Group; undertake project management and be involved in the supervision of MRes and PhD students in the group. You need to be willing and able to communicate complex computational issues in the transdisciplinary space, which includes explaining computational method details and analysis results to biological researchers. In addition, you will be expected to present research at conferences, submit publications to refereed journals and to help attract external research funding.

Main duties / key responsibilities:

• To take initiatives in the planning of research
• To identify and develop suitable techniquesor the analysis of data
• To conduct data analysis
• To ensure the validity and reliability of data at all times
• To maintain accurate and complete records of all findings
• To write reports for submission to research sponsors
• To present findings to colleagues and at conferences
• To submit publications to refereed journals
• To provide guidance to staff and students from different subject backgrounds
• To attend relevant workshops and conferences
• To develop contacts and research collaborations within the College and the wider community
• To promote the reputation of the Group, the Department and the Institute

• Contribute to bids for research grants
• To conduct and plan own scientific work with appropriate supervision
• To maintain highly organised and accurate record of experimental Work.
• To actively participate in the research programme of the Group and Unit
• To publish in high quality journals and to present data at national and international meetings
• To participate in Group/Unit research meetings and internal seminars.
• Willingness to work out of normal working hours (including weekends) if the requirements of the project demand
• To collaborate with other allied scientists within Institute and elsewhere in London and abroad, as appropriate
• To contribute to the smooth running of the Group
• To assist in the supervision of undergraduate and postgraduate research students and research assistants as required
• To comply with the Institute safety practices and to attend courses on safety when appropriate
• Any other duties as may be deemed reasonable by the Head of group

Working relationships:

The post-holder will report directly to the head of the group:  Professor Wiebke Arlt.

Additional information:

This post is an MRC Postdoctoral Scientist, created to support post-doctoral training and help develop and establish successful research scientists in their chosen field. During the fellowship tenure we are committed to provide mentorship for career development and improvement of communication and engagement skills.

Education / Qualifications / Training required (will be assessed from the application):

Essential:

• PhD degree in Computer Science or a related quantitative discipline

Desirable:

• Expertise in the application of machine learning approaches to steroid and global metabolome analysis

Previous work experience required (will be assessed from the application and at the interview):

Essential:

• Experience in machine learning analysis of complex data

Desirable:

• Experience of working in the interdisciplinary context in collaboration with biological and computational scientists

Personal skills/behaviours/qualities (will be assessed at the interview):

Essential:

• Evidence of organisational ability
• Good written and verbal communication skills and the ability to work effectively with researchers ranging from postgraduate students to professorial level
• Ability to work both independently and as part of a team

A highly committed individual with proactive and flexible attitude to work.

 The ability and willingness to learn new concepts and technologies rapidly whilst collaborating with different scientific disciplines.

Further information: 

Please upload your CV, names and contacts of two scientific references along with a covering letter stating why you are applying for this role (providing evidence against the requirements of the job as per the job description and person specification).