Research Technician II/III

Overview

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center is an independent, nonprofit organization providing adult cancer treatment and groundbreaking research focused on cancer and infectious diseases. Based in Seattle, Fred Hutch is the only National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center in Washington.

With a track record of global leadership in bone marrow transplantation, HIV/AIDS prevention, immunotherapy and COVID-19 vaccines, Fred Hutch has earned a reputation as one of the world’s leading cancer, infectious disease and biomedical research centers. Fred Hutch operates eight clinical care sites that provide medical oncology, infusion, radiation, proton therapy and related services, and network affiliations with hospitals in five states. Together, our fully integrated research and clinical care teams seek to discover new cures to the world’s deadliest diseases and make life beyond cancer a reality.

At Fred Hutch we value collaboration, compassion, determination, excellence, innovation, integrity and respect. These values are grounded in and expressed through the principles of diversity, equity and inclusion. Our mission is directly tied to the humanity, dignity and inherent value of each employee, patient, community member and supporter. Our commitment to learning across our differences and similarities make us stronger. We seek employees who bring different and innovative ways of seeing the world and solving problems. Fred Hutch is in pursuit of becoming an anti-racist organization. We are committed to ensuring that all candidates hired share our commitment to diversity, anti-racism and inclusion.

 

The Pancera Lab, within the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Division, works towards the development of safe and effective vaccines against HIV-1, malaria and other pathogens. Our major emphasis is the design of protein immunogens and understanding the immune response following vaccination or natural infection. The lab focuses on structural characterization of these immunogens and their immune responses. The laboratory utilizes a wide range of in vitro and in vivo systems and cutting-edge technologies and techniques.  Experimental approaches include high-throughput crystallography, cryoEM, specialized immunological methodologies and assays, molecular and cellular biology techniques, bioinformatics, and computational approaches. 

 

Our lab is seeking outstanding Research Technicians II/III to work on a project involving the characterization of the humoral immune response following vaccination against HIV, malaria or other pathogens using X-ray crystallography and cryoEM and the designs of novel immunogens.

Responsibilities

Research Technician II responsibilities: 

• Conduct protein expression and purification experiments, including affinity purification, Ion exchange and FPLC, related to the production of antibodies against viral glycoproteins for structural biology
• Responsible for crystallization of the proteins/antibodies complexes and for solving and refining their structures
• Responsible for using Electron Microscopy (both negative stain and cryoEM)
• Use of Bio Layer interferometry and ELISA
• May involve molecular modelling or structure-based mutagenesis and design
• Initiate and carry out scientific projects, under the supervision of Dr. Pancera
• Develop and demonstrate a thorough understanding of the scientific literature relating to the research topics

Research Technician III responsibilities:

• All duties listed above for Research Technician II
• X-ray protein crystallography and/or cryo-EM

Qualifications

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

 

Research Technician II:

• Intermediate-level position requiring BA/BS and 2 years of previous experience working in a laboratory
• Independent research experience outside of laboratory course work is usually necessary

Research Technician III:

In addition to the experience and qualifications outlined above:

• MS degree in a relevant field is preferred
• Hands-on experience with diverse aspects of Molecular Biology is required
• Significant expertise in X-ray protein crystallography and/or cryo-EM

 

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Knowledge of cryo-EM is not required but desirable. Candidates with backgrounds in areas such as virology, protein biochemistry, vaccine development are strongly encouraged to apply.
• Experience in X-ray crystallography and up-to-date knowledge of relevant programs including CCP4, and Phenix packages, protein purification, protein characterization, and a strong publication history are strongly desired. 
• Additional expertise with tissue culture and