ABOUT US

Applications are invited for a research fellow to join the research group led by Dr Rishi Gupta within the Research Department of Respiratory Medicine (UCL Respiratory, Division of Medicine). The post is funded by the National Institute for Health Research UCL/UCLH Biomedical Research Centre and will contribute to a range of projects across the ‘Infection, Immunopathology and Immunotherapeutics’ theme. Diagnostic and prognostic research is central to the theme, with multiple objectives seeking to develop and validate novel biomarkers or multivariable models to predict disease, clinical outcomes and responses to therapeutic interventions. The post involves close collaborations with infection and fibrosis groups at UCL (led by Prof Mahdad Nourasdeghi and Prof Joanna Porter). UCL Respiratory is an internationally recognised centre of excellence for respiratory science that consist of ~13 groups and ~85 people working on diverse aspects of lung diseases. We are the 2nd ranked centre for respiratory science in Europe. Our research approaches cover the full range from basic science and computational biology through to clinical cohorts, interventional studies and large-scale data science projects. This provides an excellent research environment, with considerable support from a cadre of highly-skilled researchers working across a range of diseases and research approaches. We have an exemplary track record in successfully supporting independently minded and talented scientists to advance their careers through personal fellowships.

The post-holder will provide data science support for diagnostic and prognostic analytic work, focusing on projects addressing: (1) acute infectious diseases presenting to UK hospital emergency departments; (2) improving stratification of preventive treatment for tuberculosis; (3) development, evaluation and implementation of a patient-focused decision aid to support patient choices for preventative therapy for tuberculosis; (4) patient stratification in interstitial lung disease. A common theme across these analyses will be the integration of multimodal data (e.g. clinical and molecular) to predict disease status and clinical outcomes, with the ultimate aim of enabling personalised treatment approaches. Data types may include clinical data, laboratory test results and whole blood RNA sequencing. The post-holder will be supported to develop their skills in data science, including biomarker evaluation and multivariable prediction model development and validation using state-of-the-art methods. They will be supported to contribute to the development of grant applications (particularly a PhD or post-doctoral Fellowship as appropriate), manuscripts and conference presentations. The post-holder will work with the supervisory team to develop reproducible analytic code pipelines. The post is for 18 months in the first instance. The role is advertised as full-time, but part-time hours will be considered. The role is advertised as post-doctoral but pre-doctoral applications will be also considered. Please note that pre-doctoral position will not be eligible for UCL visa sponsorship due to a minimum salary threshold.