Senior Research Assistant Hematopoietic Biology & Malignancy

The primary purpose of the Senior Research Assistant position is to provide supervision, special training to technical personnel and/or highly technical work in medical and related research projects. The Senior Research Assistant position is to conduct experiments and carry out research projects in varied areas of molecular and cell biology as well as in vivo studies to investigate the role of tRNA deregulation in normal blood development and leukemic transformation.

Working with mice is a must. The lab focus is to study tRNA expression and epitranscriptomic regulation of gene expression in normal and malignant hematopoiesis. We had recently identified altered tRNA biogenesis as an indicator of tumor specific amino acid demand for protein synthesis in T‑cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T‑ALL) (). The candidate will also be responsible for ordering chemicals and reagents for the lab, lab organization and day to day functioning of the laboratory.

• Employer‑paid medical coverage starting day one for employees working 30+ hours/week, plus optional group dental, vision, life, AD&D, and disability insurance.
• Accruals for PTO and Extended Illness Bank, plus paid holidays, wellness, childcare, and other leave options.
• Tuition Assistance Program after six months of service and access to extensive wellness, fitness, and employee resource groups.
• Defined‑benefit pension through the Teachers Retirement System, voluntary retirement plans, and employer‑paid life and reduced salary protection programs.

• Animal work and maintenance

  Will carry out experiments involving animals, and animal or human tissues, in accord with appropriate institutional and regulatory guidelines. Will inject tumor cells into mice, and administer drug to animals by ip injection, iv injection, or oral gavage. Will have knowledge of safety concerns when working with animal/human tissues. Manage rodent breeding colonies including mating breeders, checking pregnancy, recording litters, monitoring pups development, identifying pups for genotyping, and weaning.
  
  Collect tissues for hematology and genotyping assays. Support in vivo experiments per project protocols. Report animal status and issues. Is able to train new members of the laboratory in animal techniques. Responsible for maintaining laboratory animals and maintaining up-to‑date animal inventory.

• Molecular Biology techniques

  Assist in standard laboratory techniques (maintaining mammalian cells, growth assays, drug response assays, transfection and viral infection), nucleic acid extraction, PCR analyses, immunoblotting, CRISPR screens and NGS library preparation.

• Laboratory Organization and Maintenance

  Orders and organizes supplies for the laboratory. Maintains lab work area and lab equipment, monitoring it daily to ensure the lab operates safely, is clean, and all equipment is in good working order; understands correct operation of all lab equipment, and follows written instructions/operations manual. Prepares sterile media and solutions. Ability to work with little direct oversight. Attention to detail and excellent organizational skills.

Other duties as assigned.

Required:

Bachelor's Degree Natural sciences or related field.
Preferred:
Master's Degree Basic sciences.

Required:

Three years Scientific or experimental research work experience. One year experience with preferred degree.
Preferred:
Experience with in vivo mouse studies, including tumor cell injections, drug administration (IP, IV, oral gavage), and rodent colony management such as breeding, genotyping, tissue collection, and animal health monitoring in compliance with regulatory guidelines.

This position may be responsible for maintaining the security and integrity of critical infrastructure, as defined in Section 113.001(2) of the Texas Business and Commerce Code, and therefore may require routine reviews and screening. The ability to satisfy and maintain all requirements necessary to ensure the continued security and integrity of such infrastructure is a condition of hire and continued employment.

It is the policy of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center to provide equal employment opportunity without regard to race, color, religion, age, national origin, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, disability, protected veteran status, genetic information, or any other basis protected by institutional policy or by federal, state, or local laws unless such distinction is required by law.

• Requisition
• Employment Status:
  Full-Time
• Employee Status:
  Regular
• Work Week:
  Days
• Minimum Salary: US Dollar (USD) 51,500
• Midpoint Salary: US Dollar (USD) 64,500
• Maximum Salary : US Dollar (USD) 77,500
• FLSA: exempt and not eligible for overtime pay
• Fund Type:
  Soft
• Work Location:
  
  Onsite
• Pivotal Position:
  Yes
• Referral Bonus Available?:
  Yes
• Relocation Assistance Available?:
  Yes