Laboratory Technician

This position is a part of the Non-Academic Staff Association (NASA).

This position has a term length of 1 year plus a day and offers a comprehensive benefits package which can be viewed on ourBenefits Overview page .

Location - Work primarily takes place at North Campus, Edmonton.

Working for the University of Alberta

The University of Alberta acknowledges that we are located on Treaty 6 territory, and respects the histories, languages and cultures of First Nations, Métis, Inuit and all First Peoples of Canada, whose presence continues to enrich our vibrant community.

The University of Alberta is teeming with change makers, community builders, and world shapers who lead with purpose each and every day. We are home to more than 40,000 students in 200+ undergraduate and 500+ graduate programs, over 13,000 faculty and staff, 260,000 alumni worldwide and have been recognized as one of Canada’s Greenest Employers for over a decade.

Your work will have a meaningful influence on a fascinating cross section of people—from our students and stakeholders, to our renowned researchers and innovators who are quite literally curing diseases, making discoveries and generating solutions that make the world healthier, safer, stronger, and more just.

Working for the Department of Surgery

The Department of Surgery has 15 divisions and offers programs in undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate studies.  The department also includes many other research groups who contribute to cutting edge advancement in areas such as transplantation, joint preservation and regeneration and surgical simulation technology.  Founded in 1922, the department has been a leader in its field, striving to achieve a balance between technology and the human element that defines the art of surgery.  The overarching mission of the department is to restore health through surgical intervention, and to remember that patient dignity and comfort are integral to overall health.  Further information on the department can be found at www.ualberta/ca/surgery .

Position Summary

Reporting to the Operations Director, the Laboratory Technician will use 3D-suspension culture methods to optimize beta-cell differentiation protocols and deliver scale-up of these endocrine cells.

Diabetes is a global health problem worldwide with a huge economic burden. Cell therapies, such as induced pluripotent stem cells could provide a replenishable source of beta cells. Optimized methods and scale-up strategies for human stem cell-derived beta cells could potentially translate this into clinical therapy.

Progressive deterioration of pancreatic beta cells is a hallmark of both type -1 and -2 diabetes. Stem cell therapy shows great promise and has a clear proof of concept to reverse diabetes, but with a limitation of production of sufficient tissue mass for transplant. More advanced methods could lead to scale-up and mass production of reliable stem cell-derived beta cells without off-target cells.

Duties

• Routine cell culture: maintenance and differentiation of ESC/iPS cell cultures into pancreatic lineage cells. 60% (including data analysis).
• General lab duties such as maintenance of lab equipment, purchasing, inventory control, cleaning, preparing solutions, data collection and documentation.
• Basic cell biology techniques such as DNA/RNA purification, Q-PCR gene expression, Immunochemistry, protein analysis, Flow cytometry, and Immunoassay (ELISA) (including data analysis). 
• Some minor animal work with mice.

Qualifications

• A BSc degree in Bioscience related field or a related discipline preferred or a certificate in a technical college such as NAIT in biology, science or biotechnology.
• Computer proficiency with MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
• Strong communication skills in English, both written and verbal.
• Strong analytical skills, organization skills and time management skills.
• One to two years experience in a laboratory setting.
• Knowledge of University of Alberta policies and procedures would be an asset.

At the University of Alberta, we are committed to creating an inclusive and accessible hiring process for all candidates. If you require accommodations to participate in the interview process, please let us know at the time of booking your interview and we will make every effort to accommodate your needs

Note: Online applications are accepted until midnight Mountain Standard Time of the closing date.

We thank all applicants for their interest; however, only those individuals selected for an interview will be contacted.