King's College London

About Us

King’s College London is a leading University with nine Faculties. As part of King’s Health Partners, we have an excellent environment for health care interaction and a strong focus on mentoring and career development.

The Clinical Diagnostics Development Unit (CDDU) was launched in late 2023 funded by King’s Health Partners as a new core facility within the department of infectious diseases. The CDDU is a translational research laboratory dedicated to the processing of human samples to facilitate research in infection, inflammation and immune-related disorders and where adherence to harmonized protocols is essential. We also work together with our collaborators and external clients to develop novel protocols to aid biomarker discovery with diagnostic applications.

The CDDU was formed from the back of King’s College London’s COVID-19 testing programme, and we gained UKAS accreditation (ISO 15189) for our unique COVID-19 testing assay. Our expertise in this area and quality management systems will facilitate the accreditation of other novel assays which we hope will be routinely used in the clinics based upon these governing standards.

Together with local core facilities we provide end-to-end biological sample processing and data analysis for biomarker discovery from clinical samples that will help to dissect the signalling pathways dysregulated in disease and response to therapy. 

About the role

We are looking for a research assistant with a biomedical and strong molecular biology background. The successful candidate should be skilled, meticulous and versatile, who will support the team in the day-to-day running of the Clinical Diagnostics Development Unit (CDDU). The CDDU is a translational research laboratory dedicated to the processing of human biological samples to facilitate research in infection, inflammation and immune-related disorders and where adherence to protocols is essential. The role involves a combination of performing laboratory technical assays, quality audits, research and development (R&D), administration, training others as well as daily laboratory maintenance.

The role holder will have the responsibility for the collection and processing of clinical and academic research generated human biological specimens to support research activities across various projects and themes. You will assist the team in all laboratory operations including: biological sample processing from clinical trials and academic research, method validation, various proteomic/ nucleic acid assays, cell functional assays, sample inventory and documentation audits, and general laboratory and equipment maintenance as well as troubleshooting. This will involve work on projects both independently and as a team. You will create and maintain a database of results for routine and research purposes. You will liaise with research groups within King’s Health Partners and external clients.

There will also be a strong focus in this role on the development of protocols for next-generation sequencing of respiratory virus genomes using Oxford Nanopore Technologies based sequencing techniques, and associated library preparation and quality control. You will work independently on this project in parallel with the work described above.

Analytical techniques include: PCR, Agarose gel electrophoresis, quantitative PCR, infection research (viral detection and cell infectivity assays), next generation sequencing of viral genomes, cytology, immunohistochemistry, flow cytometry, PBMC isolation and other technical assays as required to deliver the client-based operational plan. You will also be involved in bespoke assay development and validation. You will work closely with the CDDU quality manager to regularly review our quality processes and documentation towards GCLP and UKAS ISO 17025 regulatory compliance.

On a day-to-day basis, you will take ownership of your assigned work to completion including associated data analysis and necessary written reports. Updating paper and digital logs of samples, data generated and required communications with team members, users, service engineers and local estates. Maintain adherence to the required quality, safety and regulatory requirements. You will be expected to write laboratory schedules, standard operating procedures (SOPs), data reports and participate in audit preparation and risk assessments. You will be expected to present study data to the team, board members and users.

The post holder should be familiar with graphical and statistical packages and spreadsheets for data entry and analysis. The successful candidate will be expected to help train other staff and students, be self-motivated to update their technical and scientific knowledge. To manage their workloads to strict timelines and ensure sample and data integrity.

There will occasionally be clinical research studies requiring extended hours and weekend work for sample processing which will require the candidate to have a flexible approach within the team.

Further enquiries about the role can be made directly to the CDDU Manager Dr. Varsha Kanabar-Raivadera. 

This is a full time post (35 hours per week), and you will be offered a fixed term contract for 12 Months.

Research staff at King’s are entitled to at least 10 days per year (pro-rata) for professional development. This entitlement, from the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers, applies to Postdocs, Research Assistants, Research and Teaching Technicians, Teaching Fellows and AEP equivalent up to and including grade 7. Visit the Centre for Research Staff Development for more information.

About You

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

Essential criteria

1. MSc in biological/biomedical sciences/molecular biology/ or equivalent
2. Experience in using advanced molecular biology techniques – Nucleic acid extraction, PCR, agarose gel electrophoresis, molecular cloning, next-generation sequencing and sequencing library preparation, particularly Oxford nanopore technologies-based methods
3. Experience in propagation of respiratory viruses and infectivity assays
4. Experience in handling and processing human biological samples with certified GCP and HTA training
5. Tissue culture experience in both cell lines and primary human cells
6. Excellent time management skills with the ability to multi-task and prioritise, and complete work within deadlines
7. Effective verbal and written communication. Ability to summarise and present data, using a variety of scientific, word processing, spreadsheet or statistical software applications or program platforms
8. Basic bioinformatic skills with proficiency in Python, R and Unix

Desirable criteria

1. Experience with immunocytochemistry and immunohistochemistry
2. Experience in western blotting, ELISA, flow cytometry
3. Experience in culturing/whole genome sequencing of other pathogens

Downloading a copy of our Job Description

Full details of the role and the skills, knowledge and experience required can be found in the Job Description document, provided at the bottom of the page. This document will provide information of what criteria will be assessed at each stage of the recruitment process.

Further Information

We pride ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming. We embrace diversity and want everyone to feel that they belong and are connected to others in our community.

We are committed to working with our staff and unions on these and other issues, to continue to support our people and to develop a diverse and inclusive culture at King's.

As part of this commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion and through this appointment process, it is our aim to develop candidate pools that include applicants from all backgrounds and communities.

We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the advert. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.

To find out how our managers will review your application, please take a look at our ‘How we Recruit’ pages.

This post is subject to Occupational Health clearance.