Research Technician at University of Bristol

The role

We are looking for a talented, experienced, and organised research technician to join our lab to carry out laboratory research and provide essential research laboratory support.

The Patel lab at the School of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, University of Bristol studies how tissues regenerate themselves after damage.

To understand this process, we use the adult Drosophila intestine (midgut), which has many similarities to our own intestine. Upon injury, the adult fly midgut regenerates itself by replacing lost cells via rapid intestinal stem cell (ISC) proliferation. One potential mechanism that may govern how midguts sense and respond to tissue damage is the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which play an essential role in whole body, appendage, and tissue regeneration in various organisms. Likewise, in adult fly midguts, ROS production also promotes ISC-mediated regeneration. Damage activates ROS-mediated Ask1-p38 stress signalling in enterocytes, which in turn stimulates production of an ISC mitogen (Patel, 2019; PMID:31554796). This mechanism, however, only partially accounts for how ROS promote midgut regeneration.

What will you be doing?

You will use genetics, immunostaining, molecular biology, light microscopy and image analysis to further determine how damaged midguts respond to ROS and how ROS promote adult fly intestinal regeneration. You will work alongside with other lab members whilst also working independently on your own project.

You will also provide essential research laboratory support to ensure the laboratories are prepared for experimentation by other researchers. This includes maintaining stocks of lab consumables (e.g., ordering/purchasing, unpacking, storing, organising, inventory), maintaining and cleaning laboratory equipment, overseeing equipment repairs, removing waste (hazardous and non-hazardous), aliquoting of reagents, preparing bacterial stocks/cultures, preparing lab stock solutions, autoclaving, Drosophila stock husbandry and preparing biosafety risk assessments. You will also support research activities by contributing to training in basic techniques and essential core functions.

You should apply if

Applicants should have Relevant qualification at GCSE, or NVQ level 2/3, or equivalent level, or equivalent work experience. Expertise with Drosophila and light microscopy are essential. You should also have:

 Experience of working in a technical laboratory to include laboratory techniques, process improvement and problem solving

• Excellent IT skills, and an ability to effectively use new software or IT systems when required
• Excellent organisational skills, with the ability to deal with and prioritise a range of ongoing tasks at the same time, and to be able to cope under pressure
• Ability to carry out procedures in an accurate and timely manner, and contribute to process improvement
• Ability to work with minimal supervision towards pre-defined goals
• Proven experience of completing tasks to a high level of accuracy

Some weekend work is required.

This full-time appointment is available in January, 2024 and will be for 1 year with the possibility of extension.

For more information about our lab and research, please visit www.gutstresslab.org.

Additional information

For informal enquiries please contact Dr Parthive Patel (p.patel@bristol.ac.uk). 

Our strategy and mission

We recently launched our strategy to 2030 tying together our mission, vision and values.

The University of Bristol aims to be a place where everyone feels able to be themselves and do their best in an inclusive working environment where all colleagues can thrive and reach their full potential. We want to attract, develop, and retain individuals with different experiences, backgrounds and perspectives.

Available documents