he University of Oslo is Norway’s oldest and highest ranked educational and research institution, with 26 500 students and 7 200 employees. With its broad range of academic disciplines and internationally recognised research communities, UiO is an important contributor to society.
The Institute of Clinical Medicine (Klinmed) is one of three institutes under the Faculty. Klinmed is responsible for the Faculty's educational and research activities at Oslo University Hospital and Akershus University Hospital. With about 900 employees spread over approximately 425 man-labour years, Klinmed is the university's largest institute. Our activities follow the clinical activity at the hospitals and are spread across a number of geographical areas.
About the position
We have available a position as Researcher position for a fixed term of two years on a project financed by The Norwegian Research Council concerning research on the child cancer rhabdomyosarcoma. The position is available at the Institute for Cancer Research. The institute hosts core facilities for multiparameter flow cytometery, next generation sequencing, imaging and bioinformatics. The Comprehensive Cancer Center (CCC) of Oslo University Hospital (OUH) Radiumhospitalet, is one of the largest Cancer Centers in Europe.
The project is led by Professor Jørgen Wesche who is leader of the "Molecular Biology of Sarcomas” group at the Institute for Cancer Research. The goal of the group is to develop novel possibilities for precision medicine in cancer treatment. The group is member of a Norwegian Centre of Excellence, Centre for Cancer Cell Reprogramming (CanCell). The group makes extensive use of advanced molecular cell biology methods, as well as proteomic and genomic methods.
Precision medicine is the new paradigm of modern cancer treatment and gives hope to an increasing number of cancer patients. Unfortunately, childhood cancers seem to lag behind this development mainly because they are rare and therefore difficult to study and they have little commercial interest. While rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) has a high probability for positive treatment outcome, many patients with metastatic disease succumb to their disease and patients with relapse usually have a dismal prognosis. Furthermore, the high positive treatment rates in childhood cancer may be misleading as many paediatric cancer patients suffer from severe side effects later in life. It is therefore clear that new treatment strategies are required to improve the outcome of paediatric cancer patients.
CRISPR based technologies have revolutionized medical research in the last years and have opened up for affordable genetic screens in mammalian cells to investigate functional networks in cancer. We will perform genetic screens in selected rhabdomyosarcoma cell lines of both alveolar and embryonal origin in order to identify relevant targets for precision medicine. A focused library towards drug targets, kinases and phosphatases will be applied and the functional readout of the screen will be cell viability in order to identify targets that can inhibit the growth of RMS cells.
Novel targets from CRISPR screens will be validated by immunohistochemistry on RMS patient material from the Norwegian Childhood Cancer Biobank. Drugs against selected promising candidates will be tested in panels of RMS cell lines. Thus, we will identify novel targets for precision therapy in RMS with the possibility for further clinical testing.
Duties of the position
Candidates should have qualifications matching the technologies that will be used in the project (see under job description).
Previous work with CRISPR/Cas9 technology including CRISPR-based screens is required.
Previous work within the field of rhabdomyosarcoma is required
Excellent skills in cell culturing and maintenance are required
Experience in cell biology research is an advantage.
Excellent written and oral communication skills in English.
What skills are important in this role
Required skills
Appointment to the position of researcher in position code 1109 requires a doctoral degree.
PhD in Molecular Cell Biology is required.
Excellent written and oral communication skills in English
Personal qualities
Excellent teamwork skills
Interest in solving biological problems
Ability to design, plan, interpret original experiments in an independent and innovative manner
Employment in the position is based on a comprehensive assessment of all qualification requirements applicable to the position, including personal qualifications.
We need different perspectives in our work
UiO is an open and internationally oriented comprehensive university that strives to be an inclusive and diverse workplace and academic environment. You can read more about UiO’s work on equality, inclusion, and diversity at uio.no.
We fulfill our mission most effectively when we draw upon our variety of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives. We are looking for great colleagues—could you be the next one?
We will do our best to accommodate your needs. Relevant adjustments may include modifications to working hours, task adaptations, digital, technical, or physical adjustments, or other practical measures.
If you have an immigrant background, a disability, or CV gaps, we encourage you to indicate this in the job application portal. We always invite at least one qualified candidate from each group for an interview. In this context, disability is defined as an applicant who identifies as having a disability that requires workplace or employment-related accommodations. For more details about the requirements, please refer to the Employer portal (Norwegian).
The selections made in the job application portal are used for anonymized statistics that all state employers include in their annual reports.More information about gender equality initiatives at UiO can be found here.
We hope you will apply for the position with us.
We offer / We can offer you / Why should you choose us?
Exciting and meaningful tasks in an organization with an important societal mission, contributing to knowledge development, education, and enlightenment that promote sustainable, fair, and knowledge-based societal development.
Committed colleagues in a good working environment.
A workplace with good development and career opportunities.
Membership in the Statens Pensjonskasse, which is one of Norway's best pension schemes with beneficial mortgages and good insurance schemes.
Salary in position as Researcher, position code 1109 in salary range NOK from 650 000,- to 740 000,- depending on competence and experience. From the salary, 2 percent is deducted in statutory contributions to the State Pension Fund.
Read more about the benefits of working in the public sector at Employer Portal.
Application
Your application should include:
Application letter.
CV.
A complete list of publications.
Transcripts and certificates.
Contact information for 2-3 references.
Application with attachments must be submitted via our recruitment system Jobbnorge, click "Apply for the position".
When applying for the position, we ask you to retrieve your education results from Vitnemålsportalen.no. If your education results are not available through Vitnemålsportalen, we ask you to upload copies of your transcripts or grades. Please note that all documentation must be in English or a Scandinavian language.
General information
The best qualified candidates will invited for interviews.
Applicant lists can be published in accordance with Norwegian Freedom of Information Act § 25. When you apply for a position with us, your name will appear on the public applicant list. It is possible to request to be excluded from this list. You must justify why you want an exemption from publication and we will then decide whether we can grant your request. If we cannot, you will hear from us.
