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Postdoctoral Fellow � Cancer Genome Project/ Inspire2Live

Job Reference � 81361

The Cancer Genome Project (CGP ) at The Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute is at the forefront of applying the latest technologies in genome analysis in the study of human cancer. The central aim is to comprehensively characterise the full repertoire of genomic alterations that can contribute to cancer, thus empowering improvements in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer.

Applicants are sought for a Postdoctoral Fellow position available within the CGP , funded by the Inspire2Live Foundation. The research will involve the use of newly developed cancer cell organoids in high-throughput drug screens to identify molecular biomarkers of anti-cancer drug response. The CGP currently houses a high-throughput drug screen of >1000 human cancer cells and is exploring the role of novel cell lines to compliment this resource. Conditions have been established for long-term expansion of cancer stem cells from colon cancer using 3D laminin-based gels and a cocktail of growth factors. Similar protocols have been developed to culture organoids from prostate, breast, pancreas and lung cancers. Once conditions are optimized for a particular organ type, stem cells can be expanded for periods > 1 year, while retaining a stable genome and maintaining the original tissue identity. We propose to investigate the use of organoid cultures as a model system to define mutational signatures of drug response in cancer.

Essential Skills

The successful candidate will have a PhD in a scientific discipline. As interactions between internal team members and external collaborators will be key, they will have excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to prioritise tasks in order to work independently.

Ideal Skills

Experience in cell culture and cell-based assays, in particular those that are high-content and/or high-throughput.

Experience in stem cell culture would be an advantage.

Other information

Background

The Cancer Genome Project (CGP ) at the Institute has led the way in the systematic analysis of cancer genomes by using the human genome sequence and high throughput mutation detection techniques to identify somatically acquired sequence variants/mutations and hence identify genes critical in the development of human cancers ( http://www.sanger.ac.uk/genetics/CGP /).

Postdoctoral Fellows are typically in their first or second postdoctoral position as part of a period of early career research training. This is a two year fixed-term contract. Successful applicant(s) who have submitted their PhD thesis and are awaiting their PhD award to be confirmed will be placed on a transitional pay point, currently £26,103. On confirmation applicants will be moved on to the pay scale above.