Research Technician - Department of Infectious Disease and Global Health

The Department of Infectious Disease and Global Health combines four important areas of expertise within Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine. These are public/population health, international medicine, wildlife and conservation medicine and infectious disease research. The alignment of these areas promotes cross-disciplinary strengths that are important in achieving the department's goal of improving human, animal and ecosystem health locally, nationally and internationally. Research in the Department aims to advance understanding of the biology and host interaction of pathogens, particularly those causing tickborne diseases, and to use this information to develop new treatments and prevention.

Under the direction and guidance of Principal Investigator and senior research scientists, the technician will assist in a wide range of experiments using phylogenomics to analyze the evolution of tickborne pathogens and genetically manipulating ticks and Lyme disease bacteria to study vector-pathogen-host interactions. They will also assist the health monitoring and husbandry of ticks and the health of laboratory animals, including wild- and domestic birds and rodents, animal necropsy, and animal infection. The technician is expected to assist in analyzing data, manuscript preparation, presenting and archiving data arising from those experiments, and contributing to general laboratory maintenance. Other related duties as assigned.

Essential Functions as a Research Technician will be:

• Test the efficiency of Lyme disease bacterial infection in wild- and domestic birds and rodents using ticks carrying Lyme disease bacteria.
• Genetically manipulate bacteria and ticks to investigate the role of vector and bacterial determinants in contributing vector-pathogen-host interactions.
• Phylogenomic analysis of bacterial and tick determinants to contribute to vector-pathogen-host interactions.
• Tick and animal colony maintenance and husbandry
• Analyzing data, manuscript preparation, presenting and archiving data arising from the experiments
• General lab maintenance, restocking lab supplies, ordering supplies, organization and maintenance including glassware cleaning, disposal of hazardous and biohazardous waste, autoclaving, minor equipment maintenance, preparing solutions.

Basic Requirements:

• 0-1 years of related laboratory experience
• Bachelor's degree in Ecology, Evolutionary Biology, Biochemistry, Biotechnology or related area awarded by September 1, 2025

Preferred Qualifications:

• Having prior experience working on an independent research project in a research laboratory
• Prior course requirement: Have taken the Ecology, Evolutionary Biology, Microbiology, and/or Immunology courses
• Computer skills: Proficiency in using statistical, sequence analytical or script writing software, such as SPSS, R, or Python.
• Prior experience working on research animal models (e.g., Mus muculus mice) using different injection and bleeding methods.
• Prior experience working on infectious agents in a Biosafety Level 2 environment.