The Department of Pediatrics at the University of Virginia's (VA) School of Medicine is seeking applicants for a Laboratory and Research Tech 1 or 2. A Laboratory and Research Technician 1 will focus on performing routine research tasks, developing skills, and assuming routine to moderately complex technical support for research projects. Work is standard and can be achieved with some degree of independence when following established protocols and procedures. The Lab and Research Technician 2 will provide increasingly complex technical support for projects and engage in increasingly complex scientific experiments. The Lab and Research Technician 2 will operate under supervision with a degree of independence when following set protocols and procedures.

This position will support the research of Sana Syed, MD, MS focusing on understanding gut structure and function in common Pediatric GI diseases using machine learning and AI methods. The overarching goal of the Syed Lab is to personalize diagnostic and treatment plans for pediatric patients suffering from chronic gastrointestinal (GI) disease by identifying better disease biomarkers and novel drug targets. Our ultimate vision is to be able to diagnose disease subtypes and predict future disease complications, allowing for individualized insights into specific disease associations. Details about the Syed lab and its work can be found at https://med.virginia.edu/sana-syed-lab/. The UVA Department of Pediatrics and the UVA Children's Hospital share a common goal to enhance the health and well-being of children and families through collaborative medical care, education of professionals dedicated to pediatric healthcare, breakthrough research that improves lives, leadership, and community service.

The successful candidate will:

• Complete data entry, cleaning, analysis, and presentation.
• Perform digital slide analysis and annotation.
• Assist in preparation and writing of grant proposals and manuscripts.
• Participate in conducting scientific experiments and performing technical simple wet lab assays. Analyze and assess interpretation of experimental results in the context of the medical field.
• Maintain lab inventories.
• Communicate with national and international collaborators.
• Assist in the evaluation of research methods, procedures, and techniques based on established objectives.
• Provide basic assistance to researchers in manipulating, computing, and analyzing data using specialized statistical computer software. Evaluate experiment results using statistical and multivariate analyses.
• Perform library and literature research.
• Explain work instructions and may adapt general methods and procedures in order to meet the needs of the research.
• Assist in training other staff members on procedures.
• In addition, other duties may be assigned.

Qualified Candidates must have:

Lab and Research Technician 1

• Education: High school diploma or equivalent.
• Experience: At least 1 year of lab experience, which may include student experience. Bachelor's degree will be considered in lieu of experience.

Lab and Research Technician 2:

• Education: Associate's degree.
• Experience: At least 2 years of lab experience, which may include student experience. Bachelor's degree in related science will be considered in lieu of experience.

Preferred experience includes:

• Research experience in the cultivation and genetic manipulation of pathogenic E. coli, such as Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli, Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli, and Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli.
• Experience in DNA, RNA, and protein purification; PCR; qRT-PCR; gene cloning; cell culture; and handling of small animal models is preferred.

Physical Demands:
This position can spend extensive periods of time standing and squatting while conducting experiments or caring for animals. Also requires keyboarding and other bench work and animal procedures requiring fine finger manipulation.

The Laboratory Specialist will report to Dr. Sana Syed. For additional information about the position, please contact Adam Greene, PhD, Research Program Manager at ARG7EF@virginia.edu. The anticipated start date is August 15, 2022. This is a restricted, term-limited position for two years with the possibility of renewal dependent upon project need, availability of fundin,g and performance. This is a non-exempt, benefited position. For more information on the benefits at UVA, visit hr.virginia.edu/benefits. This position is located in Charlottesville, VA. This position will remain open until filled. This position will sponsor applicants for work visas.

The University will perform background checks on all new hires prior to employment. A completed pre-employment health screen is required for this position prior to employment.

For more information about UVA and the Charlottesville community, please see http://www.virginia.edu/life/charlottesville and https://embarkcva.com/.

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