Temporary Genome Editing Associate

Raleigh, NC – Temporary position, 30-40 hours per week (Monday to Friday, 8 am to 4 pm or 5 pm) with occasional weekend work.

About the role

Assist with wheat and corn transformation pipeline, manage greenhouse and tissue-culture work to transform plants, recover edited plants, and sequence edits. Optimize protocols and fine-tune them for specific genotypes. Collaborate on vector design and construction, develop a TaqMan qPCR platform for high-throughput molecular assays linked to lab databases, and co-create multiple plant-transformation platforms across the Genome Sciences, Lab, and Genome Editing Center. Deliver edited plants for industry projects, engage with stakeholders, and present results weekly.

Responsibilities

• Assist with wheat and corn transformation pipeline
• Manage greenhouse and tissue-culture work to transform plants, recover edited plants, and sequence edits
• Optimize and fine-tune protocols for specific genotypes
• Assist with vector design and construction
• Develop a TaqMan qPCR platform for high-throughput molecular assays integrated with lab databases
• Work with a senior research scholar to develop binary vectors for plant transformation
• Collaborate across Genome Sciences, Lab, and Genome Editing Center to co-create multiple plant-transformation platforms
• Deliver plants through transformation and genome editing for industry projects
• Engage with multiple stakeholders and present results weekly

Requirements

• Relevant Master’s degree, or relevant Bachelor’s degree plus 3 or more years of relevant experience
• Experience with plant transformation (tissue culture)
• Experience handling bacterial cultures and strains
• Experience with PCR and Sanger sequencing

Preferred Qualifications

• At least 5 years of experience in a plant transformation or engineering lab

Benefits

• Health insurance for temporary employees
• LEAD career-enhancement courses
• Free admission to non-revenue-generating sporting events
• Childcare discounts
• Wellness & Recreation membership and programs

Pay

$26.44–$30 per hour