BFT - Research I

Mass General Brigham•Somerville, MA

3d•$18 - $22•Onsite

About The Position

Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), within the Lemieux Laboratory in the Division of Infectious Diseases, is seeking a Research Associate I to support respiratory pathogen surveillance and biorepository operations across several federally funded programs. The position will focus on specimen intake, accessioning, processing, microbiological testing, and the long term organization and tracking of a clinical research biorepository of approximately 100,000 samples. The Research Associate I will coordinate closely with the MGH clinical laboratories, the MGH Division of Infectious Diseases, and external collaborators including the Broad Institute, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Core activities include specimen receipt and QC, aliquoting and storage, nucleic acid extraction, routine molecular testing, laboratory information management system (LIMS) data entry and reconciliation, chain of custody documentation, and the day to day inventory management of a high volume biorepository. The position requires strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and the ability to maintain accurate records over time while performing repetitive and meticulous tasks. The Research Associate I will work under the supervision of Dr. Jacob Lemieux and in collaboration with investigators in the Division of Infectious Diseases and MGH Clinical Microbiology. All testing performed in this role is for research and/or surveillance purposes (non-clinical reporting); clinical technician certification is not required.

Requirements

Demonstrated organizational skills and strong attention to detail, including the ability to execute repetitive, meticulous tasks over extended periods without loss of accuracy or consistency.
Ability to maintain accurate and auditable records for large numbers of clinical specimens, including storage locations, aliquot counts, sample status, and chain of custody across a biorepository of tens of thousands of samples.
Experience with, or demonstrated ability to rapidly learn, laboratory information management systems (LIMS); prior experience with a clinical LIMS is strongly preferred.
Familiarity with biorepository or biobank operations, freezer inventory systems, and sample tracking best practices is preferred.
Comfort with basic molecular laboratory techniques (e.g., pipetting, nucleic acid extraction, RT-qPCR) and contamination prevention practices; ability to follow SOPs and biosafety requirements in a clinical and research laboratory setting.
Strong time management skills and the ability to work independently across multiple concurrent projects while meeting deadlines; strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to document workflows clearly and coordinate with clinical, academic, and public health partners; comfort with data entry and basic data review tools (e.g., Excel) and familiarity with electronic documentation practices.
A bachelor’s degree in a biological, biomedical, biotechnology, or other relevant scientific field is required.
A minimum of 0 to 2 years of relevant laboratory experience is required.

Nice To Haves

Prior experience in one or more of the following is preferred: Specimen processing and accessioning in a clinical, research, or biorepository laboratory setting.
Use of a laboratory information management system (LIMS), particularly a clinical LIMS such as EPIC (Beaker).
Biorepository or biobank operations, including freezer inventory management and sample tracking at scale.
Nucleic acid extraction and/or RT-qPCR or qPCR workflows.
Working in or adjacent to a clinical microbiology, molecular diagnostics, or similarly regulated laboratory environment with strong documentation expectations.
Basic data entry, reconciliation, and documentation work using Microsoft Office applications, or similar tools.

Responsibilities

Receive, accession, and process clinical research specimens (nasopharyngeal swabs, anterior nasal swabs, bronchial lavage, and related respiratory specimens, as well as blood and blood component specimens) for research and biorepository activities.
Perform initial QC, aliquoting, labeling, and placement into long term storage.
Manage and inventory a biorepository of approximately 100,000 clinical research specimens, including freezer organization, box and position level tracking, pull lists for downstream testing, and periodic reconciliation of physical inventory against digital records. Includes both prospective collections and retrospective organization.
Enter, track, and reconcile specimen and test data in laboratory information management systems (LIMS) and study databases (e.g. REDCap); identify and resolve discrepancies between clinical source data and research records.
Perform routine microbiological and molecular testing techniques including nucleic acid extraction (manual and automated), RT-qPCR, and supporting QC workflows on respiratory specimens.
Support sample handoff to downstream next generation sequencing and molecular characterization workflows, including sample selection, retrieval, QC, and transfer to sequencing teams at MGH and the Broad Institute.
Maintain accurate documentation (lab notebook, SOPs, batch records, QC logs, incident reporting, and sample chain of custody) and follow institutional biosafety and data security requirements, including HIPAA and Limited Dataset handling.
Coordinate sample transfers within the Mass General Brigham (MGB) network and to external partners (Broad Institute, MDPH, CDC, and academic collaborators including Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health), including preparation of shipping manifests, temperature controlled packaging, and tracking documentation.
Support audit readiness and compliance activities for federally funded projects and IRB approved protocols, including periodic specimen inventory reconciliation, documentation review, and preparation of reporting materials.
Communicate effectively with supervisors, clinical laboratory partners, and external collaborators regarding specimen status, backlogs, and testing timelines; contribute to SOPs, method write ups, protocols, and internal training as needed.