Research Technician

Summary:

The Ragon Institute is a highly unique, innovative, and collaborative research center at the forefront of biomedical science. Founded by Massachusetts General Brigham, MIT, and Harvard, the Ragon vision is a bold one: to harness the power of the immune system to prevent and cure human disease on a global scale. This vision is pursued and advanced every day by a group of highly motivated individuals. The Ragon Institute, at every level, depends upon collaboration, compassion, dedication, and innovation. It is a results-oriented organization that seeks people who not only embrace these values but who thrive in teams and want to work in a dynamic environment.

The Kwon Laboratory (www.kwonlab.org) at the Ragon Institute has an opening for a highly motivated research technician to study microbial ecology and mucosal immune responses in the female genital tract and gut that impact human health. The person hired will work under the supervision of Prof. Kwon and the Kwon Lab Director of Sequencing and Data Generation conducting patient-oriented translational research to develop new insights and therapeutic strategies to improve health outcomes globally. Projects will advance novel therapeutic strategies and utilize samples from large, well characterized patient cohorts based in the US and sub-Saharan Africa to understand how microbial communities shape mucosal immunity, epithelial barrier function, inflammation, and susceptibility to infection and their impact on HIV, pregnancy, fertility, and cervical cancer. The technician will support processing and sequencing clinical samples to contribute to studies integrating anaerobic microbiology, molecular biology, and cellular immunology approaches to define mechanisms driving health and disease at mucosal surfaces.

Candidates will have opportunities to acquire and develop new skills, work closely with other team members, and communicate their work. State-of-the-art facilities are available within an exceptionally energetic research setting at the Ragon Institute, which is part of the Massachusetts General Hospital, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard Medical School located in Cambridge, MA. We are a mission-oriented group of highly motivated scientists from the fields of immunology, microbiology, genetics, and technology development who perform both basic and translational research. Please note that this position requires flexibility in working hours to support time-sensitive research activities and experimental schedules.

Key Responsibilities:
• Conduct experiments involving extraction of nucleic acid from clinical specimens, quantitative PCR, nucleic acid quantification, and high throughput sequencing
• Maintain detailed and accurate records of experimental work
• Analyze and present experimental data using appropriate statistical and visualization tools
• Contribute to literature reviews and experimental planning
• Ensure quality control of lab equipment, reagents, and workflows
• Collaborate effectively with internal team members and external partners, including clinical, computational, and global research collaborators
• Communicate progress regularly with the supervisor
 

Qualifications:
• Bachelor’s degree in Biology, Microbiology, Biological Engineering, Microbial Ecology, or a related field
• Prior laboratory experience through undergraduate research or in industry
• Strong interest in microbiology, immunology, host-microbe interactions, and/or
translational research
• Demonstrated intellectual curiosity, scientific rigor, and a desire to take ownership of projects are strongly valued
• Experience with bacterial culture, molecular biology techniques, and/or flow cytometry is preferred but not required
• Excellent organizational skills, attention to detail, and work ethic
• Strong written and verbal communication abilities
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively within a team
• Commitment to research that addresses global health disparities
 

The above job description details the major duties and qualifications of the listed position. The individual hired to this position confirms that they are able to perform all duties outlined. Although the specific duties and responsibilities of this position may vary slightly, the supervisor of this position will ensure that the individual hired to this position is trained and qualified to complete each task assigned.