• Make an important contribution to the health of children through medical research
• Work with one of Australia’s most respected national and independent medical research institutes
• Gain valuable experience in the not-for-profit sector

Children’s Medical Research Institute (CMRI) was Australia’s first dedicated paediatric research facility and is now one of the nation’s most highly regarded independent medical research centres.  Our research focuses on embryonic development, cancer, neuroscience and gene therapy and we have a strong international reputation based on our research outcomes. CMRI’s research programs are supported by state-of-art facilities and committed research and support staff. Our achievements are made possible by a loyal network of community supporters, highly engaged donors and the very successful Jeans for Genes® fundraising campaign.

The opportunity

The Computational Systems Biology (CSB) Group and Embryology Research Unit at CMRI is welcoming applications for a Research Officer to conduct bench (“wet-lab”) research in the areas of single cell analytics and systems stem cell biology, with an overarching goal of functionally characterising the stem cell models and apply them for regenerative medicine.

Our research focuses on the acquisition of stem cell identity and cell fate decisions during differentiation and together the two CMRI labs have established high-throughput experimental techniques such as single-cell omics and computational expertise in multi-omics data analysis. The appointee will have ample opportunity to collaborate with bioinformaticians within CMRI and from the School of Mathematics and Statistics, and systems biologists from Charles Perkins Centre (CPC) at the University of Sydney.

Duration: 3-year fixed term (full time) with potential extension to 5 years.

Salary: $88,499 – $94,998 + Superannuation + Annual Leave Loading + Salary Packaging

About you

The ideal candidate should have the follow research experience.

• A PhD in biological sciences. A strong background in molecular biology, cell biology, systems biology, biochemistry, developmental biology is desired.
• Good knowledge of stem cell biology and development.
• Experience in cell culture, experimental design, and high-through omics data generation.
• Experience in omics analysis, single cell biology, chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) is highly desirable.
• Proven ability in the formulation of research strategy and the preparation of research reports and publications.
• Proven track record of high-quality research output
• Proven excellence in written and oral communications, interacting with a variety of researchers and stakeholders
• Evidence of self-motivation and potential for undertaking original research endeavour 

About the role

This position will help you building a collaboration network across multiple teams and a track record that enables you to apply for collaborative research funding and independent research fellowship. Specific roles include (but not limited to) the following:

(i)            Lead and carry out research projects in the broad area of stem cells biology, developmental biology and systems biology.

(ii)          Prepare and publish work and present scientific results in national/international conferences.

(iii)         Develop and co-supervise research projects for honours and graduate research students.

(iv)         Assist in the recruitment of research students and working towards attracting new funding.

(v)          Build collaboration with CMRI teams and multiple institutes at USYD (e.g. CPC and School of Mathematics and Statistics) and beyond.

Computational Systems Biology lab and Embryology lab

This position will be jointly mentored by CSB head Dr Pengyi Yang and Head of Embryology Research Unit Prof. Patrick Tam. The CSB lab (https://pyanglab.github.io) specializes in computational methods for omics analysis and the Embryology lab specializes in development biology and stem cell science. The two labs combine computational and experimental expertise to understand stem cell systems, providing close collaboration among computational and systems biologists; and molecular and developmental biologists.

The key research directions include

CSB: Transcriptional regulation in stem cells (Yang et al. Molecular Cell, 2017; Kim…Yang, Nucleic Acid Research, 2020); bulk and single-cell multi-omics analysis (Yang et al, Cell Systems, 2019; Kim…Yang, Bioinformatics, 2020); and machine learning application in systems biology (Cao…Yang, Nature Machine Intelligence, 2020).

Embryology: Transcriptional and functional properties of mouse epiblast stem cells (Kojima…Tam, Cell Stem Cell, 2014); Lineage specification and tissue organization in mouse embryo (Peng et al. Nature, 2019); Signalling in epiblast stem cells (Osteil…Tam, Development, 2019).

You will be provided with a competitive remuneration package in accordance with qualifications and experience. Additional benefits include the provision of a Public Benevolent Institution salary packaging scheme and participation in an employer-contributed superannuation fund.

Applications should include a cover letter (citing PV2026), curriculum vitae and contact details (phone/email) of three professional referees and be forwarded to recruitment@cmri.org.au 

Closing date for applications is 30^th September 2020.

Please direct enquiries regarding the position to Dr Pengyi Yang (pengyi.yang@sydney.edu.au) or Prof. Patrick Tam (PTam@cmri.org.au).