Microbiologist III

IHRC INCORPORATED • Baton Rouge, LA

208d

About The Position

IHRC, Inc. provides scientific, information management, management consulting, bioinformatics, and administrative program support to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other Federal and private sector clients. The successful candidate will be a full-time employee of IHRC, Inc., and will be assigned to the Laboratory Research Branch (LRB), National Hansen’s Disease Program (NHDP), Healthcare Systems Bureau (HSB), Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), 1909 Skip Bertman Drive, Baton Rouge, Louisiana to provide support for the development and enhancement of the understanding of leprosy complex bacteria (Mycobacterium leprae [M. leprae] and M. lepromatosis). The Microbiologist III will provide research services to enhance the understanding of infection caused by Mycobacterium leprae (M. leprae) and Mycobacterium lepromatosis (M. lepromatosis).

Requirements

• Ph.D. degree in Animal Science, Biology, Microbiology, Immunology, or related discipline required, Master’s degree preferred.
• Minimum of 3 years of laboratory experience using molecular, immunological, and microbiology techniques.
• Experience developing, validating, implementing, and troubleshooting molecular-based assays.
• Experience working with pathogenic bacteria.
• Expert knowledge and ability to perform molecular techniques including PCR, sequencing, basic gene cloning techniques, gene expression, bacterial growth, and gel electrophoresis.
• Demonstrated experience in the synthesis of laboratory data and development of new experiments.
• Excellent skills in documentation and knowledge of safety requirements for research.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Experience with Microsoft Office, including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
• Demonstrated experience in statistical analysis of laboratory results using software such as SAS or SPSS.
• Demonstrated ability to work independently while being flexible to support ongoing projects.

Nice To Haves

• Previous experience working with leprosy complex bacteria (M. leprae and/or M. lepromatosis).
• Experience performing animal manipulations, including injection and dissection of major organs and tissue samples.

Responsibilities

• Design and develop molecular assays to determine viability of leprosy complex bacteria from infected animal tissues.
• Perform various molecular assays on clinical biopsy samples from leprosy patients across the leprosy spectrum.
• Design and perform experiments evaluating new anti-leprosy drugs and drug regimens utilizing the mouse footpad model of leprosy complex bacterial infection.
• Formulate complex hypotheses regarding the relationship of the host immune response with leprosy complex bacteria viability and the expression of bacterial or host genes.
• Design new primer/probe sets and assess their suitability for use as improved expression markers for detecting viable leprosy complex bacteria.
• Document all experimental procedures and compile and analyze all experimental data.
• Synthesize information suitable for critical review and publication in peer-reviewed scientific journals.
• Maintain and submit written documentation/work products in various formats including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and SAS.
• Submit Monthly and Quarterly progress reports summarizing work completed and data interpretation.

Benefits

• Salary commensurate with qualifications and experience.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree
• Number of Employees: 101-250 employees