Research Technician I

The purpose of this position is to support laboratory research investigating the molecular mechanisms underlying genetic muscle diseases and stress-response signaling in cardiac and skeletal muscle. The work focuses on how the muscle protein myosin-binding protein C (MyBP-C) interacts with actin and myosin within the sarcomere to regulate muscle contraction, including comparisons of wild-type and disease-associated mutant proteins. The long-term goal is to better understand inherited myopathies and support the development of new therapeutic strategies.

Outstanding U of A benefits include health, dental, and vision insurance plans; life insurance and disability programs; paid vacation, sick leave, and holidays; U of A/ASU/NAU tuition reduction for the employee and qualified family members; retirement plans; access to U of A recreation and cultural activities; and more!
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Assist with routine laboratory tests and procedures, including:

• Site-directed mutagenesis.
• Bacterial cell transformation and protein expression.
• Cell growth curves and temperature-dependent solubility tests.
• Protein purification by His-tag affinity and size-exclusion chromatography.
• Determine purified protein purity and yield.
• Evaluate protein-protein binding affinity in pull-down assays.
• Label and determine extent of fluorescent dye labeling of proteins.
• Prepare media, buffers, and autoclave and wash labware.

Assist with organizing and analyzing experimental data, including the following:

• Assist with combining data sets from multiple experiments and perform analysis of those experiments using standard excel functions and other software.
• Enter results from the analyses into visualization software to present data and create figures for publication.

Assist others in the lab as necessary to complete aspects of the overall project as required. These assignments may include, but are not necessarily limited to performing tests, recording and analyzing results on:

• Mutant DNA, proteins, or cells.
• Mutant mouse genotyping.
• Assays on biochemical/biophysical instrumentation (e.g., circular dichroism spectroscopy to determine secondary protein structure).
• Fluorescence based assays of protein-protein and drug-protein interactions.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Operation of instruments in routine use in cell and molecular biology labs.
• SDS-PAGE and RT-pPCR assays.
• Routine mutagenesis and bacterial cell protein expression methods.
• Statistical analysis of standard data types.

This job posting reflects the general nature and level of work expected of the selected candidate(s). It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties and responsibilities. The institution reserves the right to amend or update this description as organizational priorities and institutional needs evolve.

• High school diploma or high school diploma equivalency is required.

• Bachelor's degree in Biochemistry or a related field.
• Experience in performance of molecular biology and biochemistry procedures.