Research Assistant, APC Microbiome Ireland

The course of ulcerative colitis is usually characterized by intertwining periods of remission and relapse. The exacerbation of symptoms is unpredictable and negatively impacts patients’ physical and mental health. Although many studies aim to predict the disease recurrence, they focus on a limited number of clinical and lifestyle factors, ignoring possible interplay between them. In similar vein, studies leveraging high throughput sequencing techniques to characterize UC patients’ microbiome concentrate on gut bacteriome, which was found to be stable in adults even during symptoms’ aggravation and ignore fungi or viruses. To overcome this knowledge gap, this project aims to: 1) characterize the gut bacteriome, mycobiome and phageome of patients who suffer from frequent relapses during a 12-month period, 2) characterize the interactions between components mentioned in 1), 3) leverage of the intestinal microbes acquired in 1) and 2) as well as lifestyle and clinical markers to build a machine learning model predicting relapses in disease. The project will expand knowledge on relapse and remission dynamics in ulcerative colitis patients by 1) characterizing often neglected parts of microbiome and their interactions with bacteria 2) putting knowledge from 1) into context by including lifestyle and clinical factors, 3) identifying new relapse predictors which will contribute to the emerging field of personalized treatment plans in UC.

The main task of the research assistant in this project will be the preparation of sequencing libraries for phageome sequencing.

UCC is an accredited research organisation and as such can form hosting agreements with third country nationals (and non-EEA nationals) for the purpose of conducting research in the University.

Post Duration: 9 Months

Salary: €30,025 - €39,908 p.a. (IUA Research Assistant Salary Scale)

Project: Untangling the gut phageome dynamics of the relapse/remission cycle in ulcerative colitis

For an information package including further details of the post see https://ore.ucc.ie/.  

Position ID: 074111

Informal enquiries can be made in confidence to Andrey Shkoporov (andrey.shkoporov@ucc.ie) or Marcus Cleasson (m.claesson@ucc.ie).

Applications must be submitted online via the University College Cork vacancy portal (https://ore.ucc.ie/). Please include names and contact details of three referees. Queries relating to the online application process should be referred to recruitment@ucc.ie, quoting the job-title and project name

Candidates should apply, in confidence, before 12 noon (Irish Local Time) on Friday, 9th February, 2024.

No late applications will be accepted.

Please note that an appointment to posts advertised will be dependent on University approval, together with the terms of the employment control framework for the higher education sector.

UCC is committed to creating and fully embracing an inclusive environment where diversity is celebrated.  As a University we strive to create a workplace that reflects the diversity of our student population where people from a wide variety of backgrounds learn from one another, share ideas, and work collaboratively. UCC is committed to being an employer that recognises the value of diversity amongst its staff.  We encourage applicants to consult our policies at https://www.ucc.ie/en/edi/policies/ and initiatives at https://www.ucc.ie/en/edi/implementation/ and we welcome applications from everyone, including those who are underrepresented in the protected characteristics set out in our Equal Opportunities & Diversity Policy. 

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