CDC Development of Long-Read DNA Sequencing Newborn Screening Disorders

Position: CDC Development of Long-Read DNA Sequencing for Newborn Screening Disorders

Organization

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Organization

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Reference Code

CDC
- How To Apply

To submit your application, scroll to the bottom of this opportunity and click APPLY.

A Complete Application Consists Of

• An application
• Transcripts –  for detailed information about acceptable transcripts
• A current resume/CV, including academic history, employment history, relevant experiences, and publication list
• One educational or professional recommendation. Your application will be considered incomplete, and will not be reviewed until one recommendation is submitted.
• A copy of an abstract or reprint of an article

All documents must be in English or include an official English translation.

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Final date to receive applications

12/4/2026 3:00:00 PM Eastern Time Zone

Description

• Applications are reviewed on a rolling-basis and applications may close before the deadline.

CDC Office and Location: A Fellowship opportunity is available in the Newborn Screening and Molecular Biology Branch (NSMBB), Division of Laboratory Sciences (DLS), National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH), at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is one of the major operation components of the Department of Health and Human Services. CDC protects America from health, safety and security threats, both foreign and in the U.S. Whether diseases start at home or abroad, are chronic or acute, curable or preventable, human error or deliberate attack, CDC fights disease and supports communities and citizens to do the same.

CDC increases the health security of our nation. As the nation’s health protection agency, CDC saves lives and protects people from health threats. To accomplish its mission, CDC conducts important science and provides health information that protects our nation against expensive and dangerous health threats, and responds when these arise.

The MQIP laboratory supports newborn screening laboratories through the development of molecular assays for the detection of newborn screening disorders, technology transfer, training, production of quality assurance materials, and assistance to state programs expanding screening disorder testing. NSMBB is an ISO-accredited laboratory, and all tasks are performed in compliance with ISO standards as well as CDC and DLS policies and regulations.

Research Project: You will focus on application of long-range next-generation sequencing technologies to complement current short-read whole genome sequencing approaches used in newborn screening quality assurance and assay development. The goal is to characterize gene deletions and resolve complex haplotypes in regions where highly similar pseudogenes complicate accurate variant calling and interpretation. Research will involve the development and validation long-read sequencing workflows capable of accurately distinguishing functional genes from pseudogenes and resolving structural variants that are difficult to characterize with short-read data alone, with the ultimate aim of learning how research advancements can improve the accuracy and reliability of molecular reference materials and testing methods used by state and local public health laboratories.

Example Disorders Include

• Duchenne muscular dystrophy (detection and analysis of common deletions and insertions in the DMD gene)
• Spinal muscular atrophy (SMN1/SMN2 discrimination)
• Hemoglobinopathies (e.g., alpha-globin gene cluster deletions and…