Research Infrastructure Specialists for Clinical Proteomics Mass Spectrometry

Do you want to contribute to top quality medical research?

To be a research infrastructure specialist means to provide field specific expertise to a wide range of research projects in biosciences and to work with interesting researchers in a service setting. You work will make an important contribution through adding proteomics information and knowledge to the research and enable new discoveries in medicine and biology.

Your mission

You will be part of the Core Facility team and research group providing technological and methodological service to customers from both academic and industrial organizations. As a Research Infrastructure Specialist, you will play an active role in optimizing and applying methods and approaches for the analysis of a broad range of biological samples using our state-of-the-art MS-based proteomics platform. The work involves a combination of creative innovation and routine tasks and places a great emphasis on independence, initiative, precision, and planning. 

Through the Core Facility customer projects, you will interact with researchers from a wide range of fields, which offers an exciting opportunity to constantly learn and expand your horizon, solve non-trivial problems, and make a positive impact in the broad scientific community. You will be working with a dynamic and supportive team in a diverse, inclusive, and stimulating research environment.

Primary responsibilities:

• Provide qualified competence as well as technological and/or methodological service and development in core facility proteomics projects.
• Support Core Facility proteomics projects throughout the entire life cycle including orientation meetings with the customers, sample preparation, LC-MS proteomics analysis, raw data processing, and compiling and reporting to the customer.
• Document experiments, write technical reports, and present findings and results in internal and external meetings.
• Contribute to the development of novel analytical, methods, and techniques for proteomic analysis and characterization of complex biological and clinical samples.
• Contribute to standardization, and implementation of methods and workflows in the Core Facility setting.

In addition to the above, you may get involved in teaching at the Department of Oncology-Pathology, performing administrative and management tasks, and representing the research group and the facilities at national and international meetings and conferences, and public outreach events.

Description of the position

The position is within the regional and the national core facilities led by Professor Janne Lehtiö, located at SciLifeLab in Solna at the vibrant Karolinska Institute/Hospital campus. The regional core facility is tasked with aiding users of Swedish and international universities and industry with mass spectrometry (MS) based proteomics projects. The national facility (SciLifeLab/BioMS) offers an infrastructure for biological mass spectrometry (www.bioms.se). Combined, the regional and national facilities offer a unique research infrastructure and expertise with a focus on MS-based proteomics, clinical proteomics and proteogenomics. The core facility works in close collaboration with Prof. Janne Lehtiö’s research group, where MS-based proteomics methods are constantly developed and applied to studies aiming at improving individualized cancer therapy. This collaboration is a prerequisite for the core facility’s ability to offer services at the forefront of MS-based proteomics.

We are now looking for 2-3 highly motivated proteomics experts with experience in core facility work or equivalent to join the Mass Spectrometry Core Facility team as Research Infrastructure Specialists.

Eligibility requirements

To be eligible for an employment as Research Infrastructure Specialist the applicant must have demonstrated research expertise and been awarded a doctorate or a qualification from a foreign higher education institution deemed equivalent to a Swedish degree of doctor. The applicant must also have demonstrated technological and methodological expertise.

Assessment criteria

•  Experience in providing service and advise broadly within and outside the organization in a core facility setting.
• Knowledge in omics technology and methods including development.
• Experience in training users, students and employees in advanced technologies and methods.
• Experience in having participated in applications that received funding to operate research infrastructure.
• Experience in multidisciplinary collaborations. 

It is particularly meritorious that the applicant has shown

• Hands-on experience with state-of-the-art LC-MS platforms
• Hands-on experience with proteomic sample preparation methods, in particular the Single-Pot Solid-Phase Sample Preparation workflow, TMT labeling of peptides for LC-MS/MS quantification.
• Hands-on experience with peptide separation techniques, in particular low- and high-pH reversed-phase chromatography, high-resolution isoelectric focusing, solid-phase extraction, affinity capture/enrichment of proteins and peptides.
• Expert knowledge of general biochemical and biophysical methods and instrumentation
• Knowledge of data analysis software and algorithms for proteomic data, scientific data analysis software (R, Python, MATLAB), experience in processing and analysis of other ‘omics data.
• Excellent skills in writing protocols and SOPs.
• Proficiency in English, excellent communication and organizational skills.
•  Experience in handling robotic platforms. 

It is meritorious that the applicant has shown

•  Experience in clinical proteomics research, cancer research, biomarker discovery, and assay development.
• Experience in applying MS-based proteomics to challenging analytes such as formaldehyde-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue, ultralow/single-cell samples, non-model organisms.
• Teaching experience. 

After an overall assessment of the expertise and merits of the applicants in relation to the subject area, Karolinska Institutet will determine which of them has the best potential to contribute to a positive development of the activities at KI.

What do we offer?

A creative, international and inspiring environment with wide-ranging expertise and interests. Karolinska Institutet is one of the world's leading medical universities. Here, we conduct successful medical research and hold the largest range of medical education in Sweden. At KI, you get to meet researchers working with a wide range of specialisms and methods, giving you ample opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience with the various scientific fields within medicine and health. It is the crossover collaborations, which have pushed KI to where it is today, at the forefront of global research. Several of the people you meet in healthcare are educated at KI. A close relationship with the health care providers is important for creating groundbreaking top quality education and research. Karolinska Institutet is also a state university, which entitles you to several good benefits through our collective agreement.

Location: Solna

Your career continues here
https://www.scilifelab.se/units/global-proteomics-and-proteogenomics/

Application

We prefer that Your application is written in English, but You can also apply in Swedish. The application must be written in accordance with Karolinska Institutet's merit portfolio for research infrastructure specialist/senior research infrastructure specialist (link). Send in your application at the latest 24^th May.

Permanent position is initiated by a six months trial period.

Want to make a difference? Join us and contribute to better health for all