Senior Research Technician

Department:	School of Optometry	Effective Date:
Grade:	USG 7	Reports to:

General Accountability

This position is within the laboratories of Drs. Lyndon Jones and Michelle Senchyna at the School of Optometry at the University of Waterloo. The position is accountable to Drs Jones and Senchyna and will be directly responsible for the identification and quantification of protein deposits found on novel silicone-hydrogel contact lens materials, through the design and implementation of a variety of novel scientific methodologies.

Nature and Scope

The candidate will report directly to Drs. Lyndon Jones and Michelle Senchyna. One other Senior Research Technician and 5 graduate students will have an identical reporting structure.

Candidates will have a significant amount of responsibility and require a high degree of independence to ensure the efficient day-to-day running of the laboratory. Graduate and undergraduate student supervision will encompass approximately 20% of the candidates’ weekly responsibilities. The candidate will be required to be innovative in their approach to problem-solving and developing novel protocols as many of the project objectives within this job description are novel and highly complex. Lastly, the successful candidate will be required to interact with equipment representatives on a regular basis, ensure that laboratory supplies are adequately stocked and that equipment is suitably maintained and repaired.

Strong written and oral communication skills are required, as are basic computing skills and a strong working knowledge of literature searching and data base construction.

Significant internal interactions will occur with faculty, staff and patients within the Centre for Contact Lens Research (CCLR) at the University of Waterloo, from where most of the contact lenses and tear film samples are collected. Significant external interactions will occur with a variety of contact lens companies and planning of company visits, development of presentations on ongoing projects and oral / written presentation of data will be a necessary part of the job.

Willingness to work nights / weekends is necessary to accommodate the collection of contact lenses and tears from patients enrolled in ongoing clinical studies within the CCLR.

Several studies are conducted that may be eligible for submission to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and so compliance with upkeep of laboratory notebooks, knowledge of regulatory requirements and agencies will be critical.

Knowledge and adherence to Health and Safety and WHIMS guidelines are critical to ensure safe operation within the laboratories. Safety training of new students and volunteers within the laboratories will be required to ensure that no harm befalls any employees within the laboratories.

Preparation of abstracts for submission to scientific conferences and assistance to graduate students with such preparation will also be required.

The candidate will be required to write-out purchase requisition orders for all equipment and consumable purchases and be expected to exhibit some financial budgetary considerations.

Statistical Data

The laboratory employs two Senior Research Technicians, 3 graduate students and 2-3 undergraduate students, with a budget of approximately $ 300,000 per year.

Specific Accountabilities

A suitable candidate for this job must posses a strong background in protein isolation and quantification methodologies. Western blotting, dot blotting, micrococcyl activity assay, QBQCA and amido-black protein assays are stressed. Prior experience on a PhastSystemÔ is considered essential as is a strong background in silicone-hydrogel (SH) contact lens technology and the biochemistry of the human tear film. The successful applicant will also be fully trained in methods of human tear film collection.

Other laboratory skills that are considered a definite asset include knowledge of fluorescent imaging methods, use of radioactive isotopes and ELISA.

Graduate training and supervisory experience will be considered essential due to the heavy demand of such expertise associated with this position.

The candidate assigned to this job will be directly responsible for the following tasks: (1) establishing protocols based on ELISA, Western blotting and dot blotting to allow for the identification and quantification of protein deposits (eg: lysozyme, albumin and lactoferrin), found on traditional and SH contact lens biomaterials; (2) establishing total protein quantification protocols capable of picogram limits of detection; (3) optimizing a micrococcyl activity assay to quantify the conformation of nanogram quantities of lysozyme found on traditional and SH contact lens biomaterials; (4) use of C14-labelled lysozyme to evaluate the kinetics of deposition of lysozyme on SH contact lens biomaterials; (5) optimization of novel extraction buffers to remove total protein deposits from SH contact lens biomaterials; (6) co-ordinating the collection of contact lenses from clinical studies run in the CCLR as well as tear collection from subjects in these studies; (7) construction of literature databases detailing current concepts of contact lens biomaterial development and contact lens related ocular surface disorders; (8) supervising and training students at the graduate and undergraduate levels; (9) preparing budgets and obtaining quotes for grant proposals (eg CFI, NSERC, industrial contracts etc) (10) submit regular planning goals and project updates for research direction planning.