Post Doctoral Scientist – Humoral Immunology

Vacancy Number: PDHI/VGB/01/2013
Vaccine Group, Biosciences
Location: Nairobi, Kenya
Duration: 2 years with the possibility of renewal

Base salary dependent on skills and experience – from USD 35,000 per annum with an attractive international benefits package (tax free*).

The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) works to enhance the roles livestock play in pathways out of poverty in developing countries. ILRI is a member of the CGIAR Consortium, a global research partnership of 15 centres working with many partners for a food-secure future. ILRI has two main campuses in East Africa and other hubs in East, West and southern Africa and South, Southeast and East Asia. www.ilri.org.

CGIAR is a global agricultural research partnership for a food-secure future. Its science is carried out by 15 research centres that are members of the CGIAR Consortium in collaboration with hundreds of partner organizations. www.cgiar.org.

The Position: ILRI seeks to recruit a post-doctoral scientist in immunology who will be a key member of a team working on the cattle disease East Coast fever (ECF), caused by the parasite Theileria parva. The goal of the team is to develop a new generation vaccine for the control of ECF. S/he should have experience in humoral immunology/immuno-chemistry and early phase vaccine research to contribute to an international ECF vaccine consortium, led by ILRI with partners from UK, US, Belgium and Malawi. S/he will be involved in the discovery of new Theileria parva vaccine antigens targeted by parasite neutralizing antibodies and testing them and already identified antigens for induction of antibody-based immunity to ECF.

Responsibilities:

• Perform vaccine experiments with the p67 sporozoite antigen for generation of antibodies and identify immune-correlates with protection against infection, such as antibody titers, neutralizing antibody titers with and without complement, CD4 proliferation and isotype titers;
• Discover new sporozoite surface antigens by screening of panel/library of monoclonal antibody for surface binding to sporozoites;
• Identify antigens using blotting techniques e.g. 2-D blotting and immunoprecipitation techniques;
• Participate in planning and execution of immunization experiments using positively identified proteins including read outs: Antibody titers, isotype titers, subtype titers and CD4 proliferation assay;
• Test sera in an infection neutralization assay with and without complement for discovery of new potential vaccine candidates;
• Map sera to overlapping peptides of relevant antigens;
• Participate in planning and execution of vaccine experiment using identified/selected sporozoite antigens;
• Participate in the development/refining of a method for purification of parasite sporozoites from tick salivary glands;
• Interact with technicians and planning with these for experiments where a team is needed.

Essential Skills and Qualifications will include:

• PhD in immunology or a related field (PhD must have been attained within the last 3 years);
• Experience in humoral immunology and/or immuno-chemistry is required;
• Experience with immunogenicity studies is highly desired;
• Experience with cell culture is desirable;
• Experience with the following methods is desirable: ELISA, blotting techniques and SDS page,   2-D electrophoresis, immunoprecipitation techniques, neutralization assays;
• Ability to plan and work independently in a multi-cultural environment;
• Track record of publishing in peer-reviewed articles.

Post location: This position is based at ILRI’s Headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya.

Position level: Post-doctoral Scientist (4A).

Duration: 2 years with the possibility of renewal, contingent upon individual performance and continued funding.

Terms of appointment: ILRI offers a competitive international remuneration and benefits package which includes:  Medical insurance for staff and dependents, Life insurance, Education allowance for children, Housing allowance, Baggage Allowance, Home leave, Annual holiday entitlement of 30 days+public holidays.

*Benefits and salary are tax free subject to compliance with tax regulations of country of citizenship.

Applications:

Applicants should address a cover letter and CV with full list of publications to the Human Resources Office explaining their interest in the position, what they can bring to the job and the names and addresses (including telephone and email) of three referees who are knowledgeable about the candidate’s professional qualifications and work experience. Email your application to ilri-PDHIVGB@cgiar.org on or before 28 April 2013. The position title and reference number: PDHI/VGB/01/2013 should be clearly marked on the subject line of the online application.

To find out more about ILRI visit our website at http://www.ilri.org

To find out more about working at ILRI visit our website at http://www.ilri.org/ilricrowd/

ILRI is an equal opportunity employer.