Postdoctoral Tuberculosis Researcher (JD-0122-001)

BACK GROUND
The Oxford University Clinical Research Unit (OUCRU) is a large-scale clinical and public health research unit, with sites offices in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi in Vietnam, Jakarta in Indonesia and Kathmandu in Nepal. In Vietnam, we are hosted by the Hospital of Tropical Diseases (HTD) in Ho Chi Minh City, and the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases (NHTD) in Hanoi. OUCRU-Nepal is hosted by the Patan Academy of Health Sciences, and in Indonesia we exist in partnership with the Eijkman Institute as the Eijkman-Oxford Clinical Research Programme (EOCRU). As a Wellcome Africa Asia Programme, we have received considerable support from Wellcome since our establishment in 1991.
OUCRU's vision is to have local, regional and global impact on health by leading a locally driven research programme on infectious diseases in Southeast Asia. Priority is given to health issues important to the hospitals where we work, and to the countries as a whole where we operate: Vietnam, Indonesia and Nepal. All work is intended not only to benefit the patients seen daily at our host hospitals, but also to help improve patient care throughout Southeast Asia.
The TB group's major research interests are improving TB diagnosis and treatment by carrying out clinical trials of new diagnostic tests and therapeutic approaches. We also aim to understand the mechanisms by which host and pathogen influence disease presentations, treatment responses and outcomes using Omics technologies.
The TB group currently consists of about thirty people, including 2 Clinical Fellows, 2 Post-Docs, 3 PhD students, 6 Research Assistants, plus Study Doctors and other support staff for the clinical trials. The group has offices and laboratories in OUCRU/Hospital for Tropical Diseases and in Pham Ngoc Thach Hospital in HCMC. The group collaborates with large number of international research groups and organisations (Universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Washington, California, Harvard, Melbourne, Radboud and Stellenbosch).
*
JOB SUMMARY
Every year in Vietnam there are around 120,000 new cases of TB and 12,000 TB-related deaths, placing it among the top 20 high tuberculosis burden countries. Efforts to reduce the burden of disease are being increasingly challenged by the rise of multi-drug resistant disease. Improving the treatment and control of TB in Vietnam is, therefore, a major priority, both for the government and OUCRU. Indeed, TB has been a major focus of OUCRU's research program for the last 20 years.
The TB research group aims to unite high-quality laboratory science and clinical science to improve TB outcomes. Currently, the group's major research interests are the diagnosis, management and pathophysiology of TB meningitis; the molecular epidemiology and clinical consequence of drug resistant pulmonary TB; and the interaction between host and bacterial genotype and clinical disease phenotype.
The group's main research laboratories, in OUCRU/Hospital for Tropical Disease, have biosafety level 3 (BSL3) laboratories. There are on-site facilities to perform cell/tissue culture, real-time PCR (including the GeneXpert assay, digital PCR - Fluidigm), mycobacterial culture and drug susceptibility testing, pathogen whole genome sequencing (Illumina MySeq, NextSeq and Oxford Nanopore), and flow cytometry.
We seek an individual who will be able to strengthen our laboratory-based TB research programme. In particular, OUCRU has been developed local capacity in pathogen whole genome sequencing and bioinformatics, and is developing capacity to characterize cellular and immune responses of infections. The research opportunities in this field are considerable, especially as sequence data can be obtained 'real-time' and pathogenesis can be studied through host-pathogen interactions, in a high TB burden setting, and compared with accompanying high-quality clinical and epidemiological information.
The successful candidate would be able to explore these opportunities and be involved in an NIH funded project working on Mycobacteria tuberculosis strain-dependent interactions with host cells, in collaboration with University of California, Berkeley.
*
KEY TASKS & RESPONSIBILITIES
The post holder will report to the Head of the TB group and work closely with senior members of the group and international collaborators. The post holder will:
· Establish and perform experiments related to M. tuberculosis strains, mainly in BSL3 laboratory
· Analyse bacterial genotype and clinical phenotype data
· Develop research questions within a specific context and explore approaches to answer these questions
· Produce peer-reviewed scientific publications
· Contribute to shaping project plans and the writing of group-funding applications for new research projects
· Assist with the supervision of PhD students, MSc students and junior group members
· Be actively involved in communication and discussions with collaborators and in presenting study progress to various audiences
· Travel to University of California, Berkeley for training in advanced molecular microbiology
· Other tasks as required by the Group Head and OUCRU
.
DEPARTMENT
Tuberculosis Group
LOCATION
This post is based in OUCRU Ho Chi Minh City
Possible travel to University of California, Berkeley USA for training in new techniques
HOURS OF WORK
37.5 hours per week, extra hours may be required
TENURE
This is a 1 year contracted position, including a 2 month probation period, with possibility of extension.
REPORTING TO
Head of Tuberculosis Group, Associate Professor Nguyen Thuy Thuong Thuong