Research Assistant, Biological and Biomedical Systems, UMKC School of Science and Engineering

Hiring Department

University of Missouri - Kansas City School of Science and Engineering
Department of Biological and Biomedical Systems
Dr. Spletter's Lab
Genetics and Muscle Development
https://sse.umkc.edu/profiles/spletter-maria.html

UMKC is rated R1 by the Carnegie Research Classification of Institutions of Higher Education.

Job Description

A Research Assistant position in genetics and muscle development.

Animals have many different types of muscles that differ in their morphologies and contractile abilities. During development, muscle cells regulate gene expression and alternative splicing to fine-tune their contractile ability, and defects in this process lead to muscle disease. My lab is interested in understanding how RNA binding proteins, which regulate RNA processing, contribute to muscle-type specific development and function. We investigate this question in the powerful genetic model organism Drosophila melanogaster, the fruit fly, which shares muscle structural components as well as the mechanism of contraction with vertebrate muscle. We employ a variety of techniques, including classic genetics, live imaging, confocal microscopy and immunohistochemistry, bioinformatics, mRNA-Seq, mass spectrometry, molecular biology and protein biochemistry.

Seeking a Research Assistant who is excited to investigate muscle development and RNA regulation, who is interested in gaining experience with diverse laboratory techniques, and who is organized, reliable and works well on a team. The successful candidate will execute an independent research project within the interests of the lab, in addition to working with other team members and supporting lab operations.

Duties and responsibilities

• Learning, implementing, documenting, and teaching new techniques.
• Assisting laboratory personnel (technicians, postdocs, and graduate students) with experiments.
• Performance of standard molecular and biochemical techniques including PCR, Western blotting, cloning, immunohistochemistry, sample dissection, confocal microscopy, sequencing.
• Performing independent research once proficiency is demonstrated.
• Documenting all experiments.
• Interpreting and analyzing the results of experiments.
• Planning the next set of experiments in consultation with the supervisor.
• Presenting and discussing experiments with supervisor and entire laboratory.
• Laboratory maintenance including dishwashing, autoclaving, general lab maintenance, ordering, fly stock maintenance, fly food preparation, buffer preparation, and laboratory organization.
• Other tasks as directed by the supervisor

Qualifications

The successful candidate is expected to have a bachelor's or master's degree in biology, biochemistry, genetics or a similar field.

• They will have experience with molecular cloning, Drosophila husbandry, protein biochemistry, muscle dissection and isolation, bioinformatics, confocal microscopy and live imaging.
• Image analysis experience with CellProfiler, ImageJ, Python, R, and Spectronaut is beneficial.
• Candidates are expected to have solid organization and communication skills, a strong work ethic, and scientific writing experience.

Anticipated Hiring Range

Salary is determined by a variety of factors, including but not limited to, the individual's particular combination of education, skills, and experience, as well as organizational requirements.

As a UMKC Research Assistant you have the opportunity to expand on your education using the remarkable tuition discount for employees.

Application Materials

Application materials must be submitted online at: https://www.umkc.edu/hr/careers/ Please submit a single PDF including a cover letter detailing your motivation and previous experience together with a CV that lists contact information for three references.

Please direct all inquiries to Dr. Maria Spletter (maria.spletter@umkc.edu), School of Science and Engineering, Department of Biological and Biomedical Systems, University of Missouri-Kansas City.

If you are experiencing technical problems, please email umpshrsupport@umsystem.edu.

Application Deadline

Applications will be considered as received, and the position will remain open until filled.