Research Fellow - School of Biosciences - 97117 - Grade 7

Position Details

Phenome Centre Birmingham, School of Biosciences

Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range £30,942 to £33,797. As this vacancy has limited funding the maximum salary that can be offered is £40,322.

Grade 7

Full Time FTC, 3 years

Closing date 6 May 2021

Background

The bioinformatics post will be part of the Phenome Centre Birmingham (PCB) team and contribute to fulfilling the research objectives of the centre with a focus on the development, implementation and application of computational approaches for metabolic phenotyping in human health and toxicology.

The post has been created by a collaboration between the Phenome Centre Birmingham and the new EU H2020 PrecisionTox consortium (https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/research/centre-for-precision-toxicology/index.aspx ). The post holder will be primarily involved in the application of computational metabolomics to process, annotate and analyse the world's largest comparative, multi-omics toxicological dataset generated as part of PrecisionTox.

The PrecisionTox project, led by the University of Birmingham and involving 15 European and US organisations, blends technology and modern scientific approaches with law to establish a new cost-effective testing paradigm for chemical safety assessment - Precision Toxicology - that revolutionizes regulatory toxicology, replaces animal testing, reduces uncertainty, and determines safety factors in assessing risks to human health.

Summary of Role

The role will primarily include the development, implementation and application of data processing workflows, including experimental design, pre-processing, and statistical analysis of large scale LC-MS based metabolomics studies; collaboration with researchers within and external to the university (academic, industry, scientific instrument manufacturers); and providing training and support in bioinformatics.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

• Develop and implement computational workflows, to be applied in human health and toxicology research, enhancing the capabilities and capacity of the PCB
• Perform extensive pre-processing of metabolomics data acquired on the mass spectrometry platforms in the PCB, in particular for the PrecisionTox project
• Conduct an array of univariate and multivariate statistical analysis of data acquired on the mass spectrometry platforms, in particular for the PrecisionTox project
• Manage and ensure optimal operation of software and other bioinformatics resources so to meet research goals in a timely manner
• Curate datasets both locally at Birmingham and at international data repositories
• Disseminate high quality research in project reports, articles in peer-reviewed journals, papers at scientific conferences and to the general public
• Work with the PCB Directors to achieve the research objectives of the PCB
• Carry out administrative tasks related directly to the delivery of the research.
• Provide bioinformatics and computational biology training to University staff, students and others
• To be a conduit for the multidirectional flow of knowledge and information between the two centres: Phenome Centre Birmingham and PrecisionTox.
• Promote equality and values diversity acting as a role model and fostering an inclusive working culture.

Person Specification

• First degree in bioinformatics, (bio)chemistry, mathematics, statistics or computer science, and a PhD or equivalent experience in computational metabolomics, chemoinformatics, bioinformatics, biostatistics or a closely related area
• High level of experience in the computational analysis of metabolomics data.
• High level analytical capability.
• Good understanding of principles involved in data processing, including relevant software (e.g. XCMS, Compound Discoverer, etc)
• Hands-on skills in bioinformatics, data science or data analytics.
• Significant experience in computer programming (e.g. R-language and python).
• Experience with unit testing, code refactoring, version control (GIT), and release techniques.
• Excellent ability to communicate complex information clearly.
• Excellent ability to work within a scientifically diverse team.
• Well organised and experience in managing multiple projects simultaneously.
• A high level of accuracy and attention to detail.
• Ability to work on own initiative, manage time effectively, progress tasks concurrently and work to deadlines, including the ability to work remotely.
• Ability to assess resource requirements and use resources effectively, including extensive use of remote resources.

Informal enquires to Dr Ralf Weber, email: r.j.weber@bham.ac.uk

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