Bioinformatics Research Associate

We are seeking an enthusiastic and committed postdoctoral research associate to join the Arthritis UK Centre of Excellence in Genetics and Genomics, based at the University of Manchester. You will work closely with a research team working on a Medical Research Council funded project which aims to characterize non-coding regions of the genome that confer risk to osteoarthritis using functional genomics, with the ultimate goal of identifying the genes that cause osteoarthritis, the mechanisms by which osteoarthritis-associated SNPs alter their target genes and novel therapeutic targets.

You will be responsible for:

• To carry out statistical and bioinformatic analysis for an array of high throughput genomics and functional genomics experiments in large patient cohorts, including Hi-C, CUT&RUN, ATAC-Seq, RNA-Seq, and single cell RNA-seq.
• To develop and apply bioinformatic pipelines for multi-omics data integration and functional annotation of GWAS variants.
• To develop functionally weighted polygenic risk scores (PRS).
• To efficiently plan work and be able to effectively multitask multiple projects.
• Contribute to academic output including conference abstracts, conference presentations and peer-reviewed publications.

We welcome candidates who bring diverse perspectives, experiences, and approaches to their work.

About You

We encourage applications from individuals with a wide range of backgrounds and experiences. You should demonstrate:

Essential Criteria

• Hold, or be about to obtain, a PhD in functional genomics or bioinformatics.
• Strong background and theoretical knowledge of functional genomics, epigenetics and regulation of gene expression.
• Proven experience in the analysis and interpretation of genomics data, such as Hi-C, ATAC-seq, RNA-seq and/or CUT&RUN.
• Experience in appropriate operating systems and programming languages e.g. Linux, Python, R.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills and ability to work with colleagues at all levels.

Desirable Criteria

• Experience in multi-omics integration and functional annotation of GWAS variants.
• Experience in the generation of polygenic risk scores.
• Experience in analysing single cell RNA-seq data.
• Kowledge of public resources of human epigenomic data, e.g. Roadmap, Blueprint, Encode.
• Experience with statistics.

We value transferable skills and real-world experience as much as formal qualifications.

Our benefits include:
• Generous employer contribution pension
• 29 days annual leave plus bank holidays, along with Christmas closure
• Ride to work and EV car scheme available

For more information, please see University of Manchester Benefits. You can also find information on our Flexible and Hybrid working here.

We are an open place of enquiry and challenge. We embrace and celebrate difference, diversity and debate, and we pride ourselves on being a place of education, learning and community where we are able, within the law, to question and test received wisdom, express new ideas and explore controversial or unpopular topics and opinions. Find out more from our Freedom of Speech Policy.

Enquiries about the role, shortlisting and interviews

Name: Gisela Orozco

Email Address: gisela.orozco@manchester.ac.uk

General enquiries and administrative support

recruitmentservices.people@manchester.ac.uk

Technical and job portal support

https://jobseekersupport.jobtrain.co.uk/support/home

Applications close at midnight on the closing date.