Principal investigators – Genetics and Genomics

Overview

We are seeking talented, fine-caliber and highly-motivated principal investigators in genetics and genomics ideally specialized in newborn screening, rare diseases, and/or population genetics to join the department of Population Genomic Medicine at the Research Branch, Sidra Medicine, Qatar. Their role is to lead labs in the aforementioned areas, focusing on unraveling the molecular underpinning of biological traits and diseases prevalent in the Middle East. They will be required to develop and leverage innovative population-level experimental or computational approaches to leveraging population-level cohorts including Sidra patients in order to bring precision diagnosis and care to patients. They will also be engaged in building local capacity and expertise to further develop tools/methods from previous relevant high-impact research.

The principal investigators will be expected to work closely with various clinical departments at Sidra, and publish high-impact findings relevant to patient care in top-tier peer-review journals. They will benefit from seed institutional funding and are expected to attract competitive external funding. Also, they will take part in academic activities and serve on various research committees as required by the department. They will be expected to be productive, work with a multi-disciplinary team, and provide training to students and junior staff.

Organizational profile

Sidra Medicine is a state-of-the-art academic medical center based in Doha, Qatar aiming to provide exceptional and innovative specialty care for women and children in the country and worldwide.

Sidra’s strategy is centered around delivering precision medicine for patients, biomedical discovery, and education.

The Research branch is a core part of Sidra, harboring more than 200 researchers working on key areas of biomedicine and health in priority areas including genetic diseases, diabetes, cancer, neurological and cardiovascular diseases as well as digital health. The branch comprises research space totaling 10,000 square meters and numerous satellite laboratories and core facilities equipped with the latest research equipment, sequencing, and deep phenotyping, imaging, and biobanking.

The department of Population Genomic Medicine where the investigator positions will be focusing on developing and leveraging innovative genetic and genomic techniques at the population level to advance the diagnosis, biomarker discovery, and therapy for diseases prioritized as part of institutional and national research strategy. Notably the department works closely with the Qatar Genome Program and various national and regional research and healthcare institutions as part of its mission to help build local capacity and expertise.

Key roles and responsibilities

•    Adhering to exemplary standards of integrity, ethics, and professional conduct

•    Leading a research lab in the above-specified thematic areas by designing project plans, and experiments and overseeing implementation to the highest standards

•    Leveraging and building systematic workflows and pipelines to achieve research outcomes, integrating relevant data types including multiomic, imaging data, and HER.

•    Dissemination of research outcomes in terms of high-impact peer-review publications and intellectual property as well as presentations in major conferences

•    Closely collaborating with various stakeholders and contribute to the mission of the department and the research branch, and engage with external consortia/partnerships

•    Attracting major research grants and catalyzing novel ideas and directions to the research

•    Adhering to institutional standards and policies especially relating to regulations on patient data management and usage, and organizational values of trust, care, teamwork, transparency, innovation, and efficiency

Required experience/qualifications

•    PhD/MD in a highly relevant field, preferably genomics, genetics, or computational biology, from a well-established institution.

•    At least 3 years postdoctoral experience in relevant research area from reputable institution(s) and/or l PI/group leader experience depending on the rank

•    Outstanding knowledge of generic scientific methods, and a high ability for critical evaluation of literature and data as well as novel ideas

•    In-depth hands-on experience with techniques underlying the proposed research plans

•     Work experience in a clinical research laboratory setting/hospital-affiliated institution or in the biotechnology industry would be a plus

•    Familiarity with fundamental IT skills including Linux environment, HPC, and common software for data manipulation, writing, plotting, and presentation

•    Track record of relevant publications in high-impact peer-reviewed journals and presenting at international conferences

•    Excellent oral and written communication skills as well as the ability to collaborate effectively with teams from other disciplines

•    Fluency in written and spoken English. Knowledge of Arabic will be a plus.

•    Willingness to embrace the culture and values of Qatar

Interested persons should email their CV, statement of research interests (2 pages maximum), and the names of three references to mbaig1@sidra.org addressing Mohammad Baig and mentioned in the email subject: SIDRA-12-2022 Principal investigators – Genetics and Genomics.