Research Assistant in vivo neuroscience and rare neurodevelopmental disorders

12 Mar 2024
Job Information

Organisation/Company

RCSI - Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland

Department

Human Resources

Research Field

All

Researcher Profile

First Stage Researcher (R1)

Country

Ireland

Application Deadline

26 Mar 2024 - 23:59 (Europe/Dublin)

Type of Contract

Temporary

Job Status

Full-time

Hours Per Week

39

Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme?

Not funded by an EU programme

Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure?

No

Offer Description

Job Title: Research Assistant in vivo neuroscience and rare neurodevelopmental disorders

Department: Physiology & Medical Physics

Reporting to: Prof David Henshall

Location: FutureNeuro Research Centre, RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, 123 St Stephen Green and York Street Research Institute, Dublin 2.

Contract/Duration: Specified Purpose Contract, full time for up 12 months with the potential to extend

Remuneration: Research Assistant Scale, Point dependent on experience

Closing Date: 26th March 2024

 
 

RCSI is a community of academic, research, clinical and professional staff working collaboratively to lead the world to better health. Here, you will thrive in an innovative and inclusive atmosphere and your personal development and wellbeing will be supported. We invite you to join us to help deliver on our exciting mission “To educate, nurture and discover for the benefit of human health”. We seek candidates whose experience to date has prepared them to contribute to our commitment to the “Race Equality Action Plan 2021-2024” at RCSI. Our students come from all walks of life and so do we. We hire great people from a wide variety of backgrounds. This makes our university stronger and ensures we hire the best talent.

 

For each of the last six years, RCSI has been positioned in the Top 250 of universities worldwide in the Times Higher World university Rankings. We are proud to announce that RCSI has ranked first in the world for “Good Health and Well-being” in the Times Higher Education #SDG Impact Rankings 2023.  This reflects our commitment to supporting people of all ages to live healthy lives and our work to promote the concepts of well-being and positive health. Our values of Respect, Collaboration, Scholarship and Innovation continue to unite and direct our purpose.

 

About Our Research

RCSI recognises that excellence in research is critical to the quality of its educational activities, its credibility, and, overall, to its mission to enhance human health. RCSI’s research strategy aims to build upon its strength in translational biomedical and clinical research to deliver transformational, high impact changes in health care. Targeting both Irish national and EU funding, along with increased collaboration with industry, is a major part of the RCSI research strategy. Forging increased collaboration between RCSI PIs and industry is of critical importance to achieving success in this area. RCSI is also committed to provide its researchers with the supports and developmental opportunities to enable them to continuously grow and support their overall career development.

 

Summary of Post

A Research Assistant position is available in the laboratory of Prof David Henshall at the RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences in Ireland. We are seeking a self-motivated, creative and collaborative team member with a recent Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in neuroscience or a related discipline.

The successful candidate is expected to support research on mechanisms and treatment of acquired and genetic epilepsies. The main role of is to support in vivo studies of the effects of new treatments in preclinical mouse models. This includes husbandry, drug treatments, genotyping and histological and molecular studies. The research is funded through a grant from the FutureNeuro SFI Research Centre, a multi-disciplinary and inter-institutional research programme, providing access to world-class facilities and collaborative research teams (www.futureneurocentre.ie ). Examples of recent work include:

Leister H et al. Immunoproteasome deficiency results in age-dependent development of epilepsy. Brain Commun 6(1):fcae017 1-11 (2024)

Heiland M et al. MicroRNA-335 regulates brain excitability and is a target for seizure control in experimental epilepsy. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 120, e2216658120 (2023)

Gerbatin R et al. Life-span characterisation of epilepsy and comorbidities in Dravet syndrome mice carrying a targeted deletion of exon 1 of the Scn1a gene. Experimental Neurology 354, 114090 (2022)

 

Specifically, the main duties of the post are:

§  Assisting with animal-based activities, specifically: Management of wildtype and genetically-altered mouse colonies, genotyping, maintenance checks, minor surgical procedures, and light husbandry duties.

§  Support the design and conduct of in vivo research on mechanisms and treatment of epilepsy and co-morbidities in the animal models of epilepsy.

§  Analysis of data and maintenance of datasets.

§  Preparation and presentation of reports.

§  Carrying out animal work in compliance with HPRA, EPA and RCSI Ethics policies and regulations.

§  Assisting in the coordination of security and maintenance arrangements for the animal research facilities.

§  Supporting carrying out necessary risk assessments.

§  Liaising with relevant personnel (MRTF, BRF, Physiology Dept).

§  At times, be required to work flexible hours in line with research needs.

 

Qualifications – (Essential):

§  A BSc or MSc qualification in neuroscience, pharmacology or related discipline.

Knowledge & Experience – (Essential):

•         Careful and organized and able to interact in a busy scientific environment

•          Effective communications style

•          Proficiency in Computer/Presentation skills

•          Ability to make decisions and meet deadlines

•          Ability to work on one’s own initiative as well as in a team environment

§  Completed relevant LAST Ireland training courses

§  General lab experience; molecular biology and/or neuroscience research area would be an advantage.

§  Familiar with regulatory aspects related to use of animals in research.

§  Familiarity with laboratory Health and Safety protocols and procedures.

§  Strong organisation and project management skills to ensure tasks are delivered on time and within agreed parameters.

 

We are all too aware that imposter syndrome and the confidence gap can sometimes stop fantastic candidates putting themselves forward, so please do submit an application — we’d love to hear from you.

 

Application Process

Please apply online through the RCSI careers portal on the closing date with your CV and cover letter.

 

Informal Enquiries can be directed to Prof David C Henshall: [email protected]

 

Please note we do not accept CVs directly.

 

Click here to read our Recruitment and Selection Policy for Researcher.

 

Employee Benefits

RCSI make sure you have the resources you need to thrive by offering a wide range of benefits in areas including time away, finance, community, health, and well-being and insuring your financial future. Below are some additional benefits available to you as an RCSI employee:

•       Minimum of 20 days annual leave, plus an additional 6.5 Privilege days

•       Flexible/hybrid working options for colleagues across many roles

•       Additional leave options incl. paid maternity leave, paternity/parental leave, study leave

•       7% Employer pension contribution

•       Onsite gym €10 per/mth incl. classes and PT sessions

•       Childcare support 20% discount at Giraffe

•       Free eye test and annual flu vaccination

•       TaxSaver commuter tickets and Bike to Work schemes

•       A site sustainability team focusing on the environmental initiatives; Green Campus Initiative ’

•       Competitively priced café and restaurant

•       Equality, Diversity & Inclusion forums, and network groups

•       Employee assistance programme with Spectrum Life

•       Learning and Development training programmes incl. LinkedIn Learning for career progression

•       Discounted services incl. GP visits, 10% off dental, staff parking, mobile tariffs, Group Scheme discount on numerous brands

•       Sports and social club incl. yoga, Pilates, fitness classes, Zumba, running club, social evenings, Summer BBQ

•       Ticket Draws for events including; Rugby, Taste of Dublin, Dublin Horse Show, theatre, music & comedy events

 
 

 

Requirements

Research Field

All

Education Level

Bachelor Degree or equivalent

Additional Information
Work Location(s)

Number of offers available

1

Company/Institute

Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland

Country

Ireland

Geofield

Where to apply

Website

https://my.corehr.com/pls/coreportal_rcsip/erq_jobspec_details_form.jobspec?p_i…

Contact

State/Province

Dublin

City

Dublin 2

Website

http://www.rcsi.ie/careers

Street

123 St Stephen's Green

Postal Code

Co.Dublin

E-Mail

[email protected]

Phone

0877558652

STATUS: EXPIRED