Technician B

• Job Type: Support Staff - Union
• Bargaining Unit: SSA
• Regular/Temporary: Regular
• End Date if Temporary:
• Hours Per Week: 35.00
• Standard Work Schedule:
• Building:
• Salary Range: 51,839 - 51,839

The salary of the finalist selected for this role will be set based on a variety of factors, including but not limited to departmental budgets, qualifications, experience, education, licenses, specialty, and training. The above hiring range represents the University's good faith and reasonable estimate of the range of possible compensation at the time of posting.

Position Summary

The Ramachandran lab is looking for an enthusiastic, dedicated, and detail-oriented laboratory technician to join the lab for 2 years. The technician will spend 50% of their time working on experiments to support projects in the lab and 50% of their time with laboratory maintenance and management. After one year of successfully supporting and contributing to projects, the technician will transition to an independent project. We study a new mechanism of protein degradation and protein homeostasis in neurons enabled by a plasma membrane-bound proteasome complex which we discovered. These “neuroproteasomes” degrade substrates independent of ubiquitylation and the resulting products of degradation are used as neuromodulators. This discovery goes against established dogma in proteostasis and in neurobiology – our goal is to understand mechanistically how neuroproteasome activity and function is enabled and to reveal the biological function of neuroproteasomes in the mammalian brain.

We adopt a collaborative and interdisciplinary approach to understanding neuroproteasome function, leveraging chemical biology, super-resolution micrsocopy, functional and Ca+2 imaging, quantitative proteomics, in vivo mouse work, primary neuronal culture, and biochemistry. The technician will conduct in vitro cell culture experiments with primary neurons and neuronal cell lines. Duties will also include in vivo animal research and husbandry, dissection, and tissue processing.

Responsibilities

The Technician will work closely with Dr. Ramachandran and other members of the lab to:

• Conduct animal research and husbandry, wean and genotype animals, setup breeding cages and crosses, maintain the animals for the lab.
• Collect, process, and analyze laboratory cell and animal samples.
• Process dissected tissue samples, including embedding, sectioning, immunohistochemistry, imaging, and analyzing, etc.
• Produce lentivirus and keeping track of stocks.
• Assistance with ordering materials for the lab and reconciliation.
• Maintaining the tissue culture room.
• Assist with project team planning and training.
• Perform other related duties and responsibilities as assigned/requested.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in biology, biochemistry or related science or equivalent combination of education, training and experience.
• Must be comfortable with learning and conducting animal work.
• Organization, punctuality, and attention to detail.
• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work well in a team.
• Possesses the ability to work independently with limited supervision after initial training.
• Ability to take detailed laboratory notes.

Preferred Qualifications

• Previous experience with laboratory techniques with references to support.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office, GraphPad Prism, Adobe Photoshop/Illustrator.

Other Requirements

• Ideal technician is leveraging this opportunity in preparation for either PhD or MD/PhD training.
• Candidates should be motivated to conduct research beyond what is classically considered “technician work” – the opportunity is intended to provide someone with a platform to launch their research careers.
• That said, we adopt an “all-hands-on-deck” mentality, where we help each other out and engage in truly collaborative work.  
• This is a full-time position that will require occasional weekend work.

Equal Opportunity Employer / Disability / Veteran

Columbia University is committed to the hiring of qualified local residents.