Research Assistant (Gut Carbohydrate Fermentation)

Applications Close: 05 September 2019

Salary: £24,815 to £30,270 depending on qualifications and experience

Contract Length: 8 months

Applications are invited for a Research Assistant to join the Laboratory of Dr Fred Warren in the Food Innovation and Health Programme at Quadram Institute Bioscience (QIB), based in Norwich, UK.

Background:

The Food Innovation and Health Programme is focussed on understanding how individual foods and diets can help us to maintain and improve our health, and developing innovative foods that promote healthy ageing.

The role:

The Research Assistant will assist with ongoing experiments in the Warren lab using the colon model system. In particular, these will be continuing the lab’s main focus through our BBSRC ISP grant on carrying out colon model experiments using a wide range of starches from different sources as substrates within the model colon system based at QIB. This will require the post holder to set up and run the model colon system.

This will be followed by metabolite analysis using 1H NMR, which the post holder will be expected to assist with, both preparing samples and subsequent analysis. The post holder will also be expected to carry out DNA extraction for subsequent 16S sequencing.

Additionally, the post holder will assist with starch structural analysis methods including size exclusion chromatography and differential scanning calorimetry for analysis of substrates.

The ideal candidate:

We are looking to hire a Research Assistant with at a minimum a BSc in a biological sciences subject, preferably also with a higher degree, to assist with our ongoing research projects.

We are looking for an enthusiastic and dedicated team member with a passion for linking structure and composition of foods to the microbiome and health outcomes.

Applicants should have Excellent time management and organisational skills. Previous experience with batch fermentation/colonic systems, microbiological techniques/anaerobic culture methods and handling human samples is desirable.

Additional information:

Salary on appointment will be within the range £24,815 to £30,270 per annum depending on qualifications and experience. This is a full time post for a contract of 8 months.

Further information and details of how to apply can be found here or contact the Human Resources team on 01603 450462 or nbi.recruitment@nbi.ac.uk  quoting reference 1003756.

Interviews will be held on 18 September 2019.

Please note, this post does not meet UKVI requirements to provide Tier 2 visa sponsorship.

We are committed to equal opportunities and welcome applications from all sectors of society.  The Institute supports equality of opportunity within the workplace and expects all employees to share and display these values.  To support our commitment, we have a range of family, faith and diversity friendly working arrangements to help all staff achieve excellence in their area of work.

As a Disability Confident employer, we guarantee to offer an interview to all disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for this vacancy.

About the Quadram Institute:

The Quadram Institute is a new interdisciplinary research institute at the forefront of a new era in food and health research. Its mission is to understand how food and the gut microbiota are linked to the promotion of health and the prevention of disease. A partnership between Quadram Institute Bioscience, the University of East Anglia, the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital and BBSRC, it brings together scientists and clinicians in a new state-of-the-art building. The Quadram Institute is based on the Norwich Research Park, one of Europe’s largest centres of life sciences and home of the John Innes Centre and The Earlham Institute.

 The closing date for applications will be 5 September 2019.

The Quadram Institute Bioscience is a registered charity (No. 1058499) and is an Equal Opportunities Employer.

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