*Postdoctoral Fellowships in Biostatistics*
Luscombe Laboratory for Computational Biology
Cancer Research UK London Research Institute
www.luscombelab.org <http://www.luscombelab.org/>

*Job ID: *POS00118
*URL: *http://tinyurl.com/caqx5q8
*Closing date: *30 April 2013

We seek a talented and motivated biostatistician to join Nick Luscombe's 
Laboratory of Computational Biology in London, UK.

The laboratory is happy, international and interactive, consisting of 
~10 students and post-docs from all over Europe. Members come from a 
wide range of educational backgrounds, including biology, chemistry and 
computer science. Lab members also participate in regular exchanges with 
our smaller group in Okinawa, Japan.

Finally, our postdocs have an excellent track record of moving onto 
independent PI positions.


*Our research*
Our research takes a genomic, integrative approach to understand gene 
regulation and evolution. We use datasets including genome sequences, 
gene expression, ChIP-seq, iCLIP and HiC data to gain insights into:
1) How gene expression is controlled;
2) How this system regulates biologically important behaviours;
3) And how a breakdown in this system leads to human diseases.

These are novel, large-scale, complex datasets that demand extensive 
mining, and development of new statistical methods for analysis.

As part of our recent move to the LRI, we are increasingly focusing 
towards understanding gene regulation and evolution in the context of 
human diseases and cancer.

Recent research successes include: investigations of evolutionary 
processes in bacterial genomes (Martincorena et al, Nature 2012); 
mechanisms of epigenetic regulation in sex determination (Conrad et 
al, Science 2012); qualitative models of nucleosome-positioning and 
transcriptional regulation (Zaugg & Luscombe, Genome Res 2012); and a 
new mechanism to suppress aberrant exon formation (Zarnack et 
al, Cell 2013).


*Ongoing projects*
Ongoing projects address the following questions.  All of these topics 
require the development of novel statistical approaches.
· How do we measure spatial organisation of chromosomes in the nucleus 
using HiC techniques?
· How does this chromosomal arrangement affect gene activities, and do 
chromosomes rearrange themselves between different cellular conditions?
· Which regions of the genome do regulatory proteins bind, and how do 
they control gene activities?
· How do their binding patterns change over time?
· How do these regulatory processes alter or break down during diseases 
such as bacterial infections and cancer progression?

Though our main research focus is genomics and transcriptional 
regulation, the laboratory is open to people who wish to develop 
research on other related areas of computational biology 
and biostatistics. People are given freedom to work on problems that 
interest them.


*Wet/dry collaborations*
The successful applicant will work closely with one of our collaborators 
producing primary data types, including Peter Fraser (HiC, nuclear 
organisation) and Jernej Ule (iCLIP, protein-RNA networks). We are also 
building new collaborations with colleagues at the LRI.


*About you*
The ideal candidate will have recently completed or be completing a PhD 
degree in Computational Biology (bioinformatics, systems biology) or 
biostatistics. Applicants must have a proven publication record.

Fluency in Linux, and excellent knowledge in a programming language is 
expected (Perl, Python, C/C++, R/BioConductor, MatLab etc). Prior 
experience with handling genome-scale data is advantageous: examples 
include genome sequence and high-throughput-sequencing data for a range 
of research applications such as gene expression, protein-DNA/RNA 
binding, and chromatin conformation measurements.

Postdocs are expected to develop and lead projects, and help supervise 
junior members of the laboratory. The ability to work in a team is 
essential.


*About the London Research Institute and Francis Crick Institute*
The LRI has an international reputation for cutting edge research into 
basic biology and it is committed to training the next generation of 
research scientists. The four-year LRI Postdoctoral Programme is part of 
this commitment, and nearly half of Postdoctoral Fellows leave to set up 
their own research groups. Postdocs also benefit from living and working 
in one of the world's greatest scientific, cultural and cosmopolitan 
capital cities.

The LRI will become part of the Francis Crick Institute in 2015, which 
will be an entirely new institute with a distinctive vision of how 
biomedical research is conducted. It will be one of the most significant 
projects in UK biomedical science for a generation.


*How to Apply*
All applications should be made via the Cancer Research UK careers 
website, where you will need to create a profile before you can submit 
an application.


-- 
Dr. Kathi Zarnack
Luscombe Group
European Bioinformatics Institute
Wellcome Trust Genome Campus
Hinxton, Cambridge
CB10 1SD, UK
tel +44 1223 494 526


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