Research Area Specialist Intermediate

Responsibilities

• Design, optimize, and execute high-dimensional immune phenotyping by flow and mass cytometry, including antibody panel design, titration, instrument acquisition, and data analysis.
• Develop, validate, and document molecular and cell-based assays, including quantitative PCR, ELISA, Meso Scale Discovery, Western blot, next-generation sequencing, and CRISPR-based approaches, and translate them into standard operating procedures.
• Maintain and culture primary and stem cell lines and process clinical and murine biological samples, including tissue dissociation and isolation of splenocytes, bone marrow, and peripheral blood mononuclear cells.
• Prepare and process samples for downstream analyses including flow and mass cytometry, histology, sequencing, and proteomics.
• Assist with in vivo murine procedures and tissue harvest in myocardial infarction and heart failure models, and coordinate cohort processing across studies.
• Train and functionally supervise incoming research staff, communicate instructions and protocols, and coordinate experimental workflows across the Goonewardena and Pinsky laboratory groups.
• Maintain rigorous, accurate records of experiments and sample inventories, and analyze data for publications under the direction of the Principal Investigator.
• Maintain a well-organized inventory of laboratory materials, place order requests with the Internal Medicine Purchasing team, and steward laboratory protocols and equipment.
• Communicate clearly and immediately about problems, uncertainty, or deviations from expected outcomes.
• Attend scheduled laboratory meetings and contribute to discussions of experimental design and troubleshooting.
• Other duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications

• A bachelor's degree in a biological or health science discipline, or an equivalent combination of education and experience; an advanced degree is preferred.
• Several years (typically three or more) of hands-on bench research experience in immunology, molecular biology, cell biology, or a closely related field.
• Demonstrated expertise in multicolor flow cytometry, including panel design, titration, and data analysis.
• Demonstrated experience with molecular and cell-based assays such as quantitative PCR, ELISA, Western blot, and next-generation sequencing, together with assay development and validation.
• Experience with mammalian cell culture and with the processing of biological samples for downstream analysis.
• Demonstrated ability to develop and document standard operating procedures and to perform repeated procedures with precision and consistency.
• Strong organizational, record-keeping, written, and verbal communication skills, including the ability to report problems or uncertainty promptly.
• Comfort with online project management tools and communication platforms.
• Flexibility to conduct experiments over some weekends as needed.
• Understands and demonstrates the core concepts of Patient and Family Centered Care, including Respect and Dignity, Information Sharing, Participation, and Team Collaboration.

Desired Qualifications

• A background in immunology and/or vascular biology.
• Experience with mass cytometry (CyTOF), or a demonstrated willingness to develop high-dimensional mass cytometry capability.
• Experience with CRISPR-based cell engineering, viral transduction (AAV or lentiviral), and high-dimensional data analysis using FlowJo, R, or comparable tools.
• Experience training, mentoring, or coordinating the work of other laboratory staff.
• Experience with murine tissue processing and cell isolation from heart, spleen, vascular tissues, and bone marrow.
• A record of contribution to peer-reviewed publications.