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Research Assistant - Department of Ophthalmology Visual Anatomical Sciences

Wayne State University is searching for an experiencedResearch Assistant - Department of Ophthalmology Visual Anatomical Sciencesat its Detroit campus location.

Wayne State is a premier, public, urban research university located in the heart of Detroit, Michigan where students from all backgrounds are offered a rich, high-quality education. Our deep-rooted commitment to excellence, collaboration, integrity, diversity and inclusion creates exceptional educational opportunities which prepare students for success in a global society.

Essential functions (job duties):

Job Purpose:

Under the direction of the Principal Investigator, provide scientific and technical assistance to

complete laboratory based, clinical or population science research. May assist in writing research protocols and in manuscript preparation. Design and perform research protocols independently or

as directed through training in more difficult or specialized procedures to meet the needs of the

research protocol.

Essential Functions:

Perform laboratory based scientific techniques or clinical/population science (human subjects) research. Design and perform experiments, recruit participants for studies by developing surveys and interviewing candidates. Participate in implementing research objectives, ensuring compliance with all legal, regulatory and protocol guidelines. Assist staff with experiments/research protocols as required. Communicate with principal investigator and Postdoctoral scholars/fellows on the status of research.

Collect and log laboratory results, clinical outcomes and/or survey data. Evaluate and perform data analysis using graphs, charts or tables to highlight the key points of the research results collected in accordance with the research protocols as stipulated. Proofread and edit research data and documents to ensure accuracy.

Assist principal investigator with writing methods and summarizing/organizing data to be used in preparing and presenting presentations for professional, scientific and academic conferences and submittal to academic and scholarly peer-reviewed journals.

Maintain the laboratory work areas including routine maintenance on laboratory equipment as required. Order and organize required research supplies and records. Maintain cleanliness and organization of work station.

Perform other related duties as assigned.

Unique duties:

The Department of Ophthalmology Visual Anatomical Sciences is looking to hire a research assistant in the Thummel Laboratory that will work primarily under the supervision of a junior level basic and translational research scientist in a tiered mentoring structure. The primary research focus of this position will involve retinal regeneration in the zebrafish using a phototoxic lesion model and research techniques including but not limited to – immunohistochemistry, RNA interference in vivo knockdown experiments, RNA/DNA isolation, and confocal microscopy. While zebrafish will be the primary model, other animal models and tissue, including human samples, may be used. T he Department of Ophthalmology Visual Anatomical Sciences is seeking a highly motivated individual at any career stage that is comfortable learning quickly and working independently when given a timeline and experimental design. Many of the skills performed in the lab do require delicate techniques under the microscope, so the applicant should be comfortable learning to perform detailed finemotor-skill work. On-the-job training will be provided, and once proficient, may be working with medical students or undergraduates as well. Authorship can be expected on every publication that results from the research in this position. Essential Functions: Performing experiments designed by the supervisor. Animal husbandry – cleaning tanks, breeding, feeding. Collecting and organizing data. Generating publishable figures for manuscripts and presentations. Tissue collection – primarily eyes and retinas from zebrafish. Microsurgical procedures on zebrafish eyes and/or embryos. RNA and DNA isolation and quantification. Immunohistochemistry – tissue preparation, sectioning, staining. Confocal microscopy.

Qualifications:

Education: Bachelor's degree

Bachelor’s degree in a related field of study, preferred. Requires advanced knowledge

predominantly intellectual in character in a field of science or learning acquired by a prolonged

course of specialized intellectual instruction.

Experience: Entry level (less that a year of job-related experience)

Experience performing basic research techniques or interacting with human subjects, preferred.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

Ability to work independently. Ability to analyze, summarize and interpret research findings and

data in reports and spreadsheets and communicate results. Knowledge of scientific integrity

principles. Excellent time management and organization skills. Excellent interpersonal and communication skills and demonstrated ability to work with others in a collaborative environment. Microsoft office software skills.

Preferred qualifications:

Experience with basic wet laboratory skills such as pipetting, molecular biology techniques such as PCR amplification, mixing reagents Experience working with zebrafish as a model organism

School/College/Division:

H06 - School of Medicine

Primary department:

H0603 - Ophthalmology, Visual and Anatomical Sciences

Employment type:

+ Regular Employee

+ Job type: Full Time

+ Job category: Research

Funding/salary information:

+ Compensation type: Annual Salary

+ Hourly rate:

+ Salary minimum: 38,000

+ Salary hire maximum: 48,000

Working conditions:

Typical work environment may include a laboratory and/ or office environment. May require working non-standard business hours including evenings and weekends. May be required to travel to scientific conferences.

Job openings:

+ Number of openings: 1

+ Reposted position: No

+ Reposted reason: None (New Requisition)

+ Prior posting/requisition number:

Background check requirements:

University policy requires certain persons who are offered employment to undergo a background check, including a criminal history check, before starting work. If you are offered employment, the university will inform you if a background check is required.