Job Title: FutureNeuro StAR Lecturer
Reporting To: Head of Department or nominee
Location: FutureNeuro Centre, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI), Dublin
School (or department): SFI FutureNeuro Research Centre
Salary and package: The salary for this position is €73,195 until the post is tenured as permanent academic lectureships (3-5 years). In addition, you will be provided with resources to support either a PhD or MD student via the School of Postgraduate Studies, dependent on your area of specialism. There is also a significant career development investment in the form of mentoring and protected research time. The position provides an opportunity to participate in a multi-disciplinary, inter-institutional team based at the FutureNeuro Centre who are focused on working with industry, patient organisations and the health service to transform the lives of patients in Ireland and worldwide.
Term of office: Tenure track appointment up to 5 years (pending performance review). You will receive a yearly progress review, and at the end of year 3, you may apply for a major review to determine whether the position will be converted to a permanent Lecturer post. The review will be overseen by a committee that is external to your academic department.
About the StAR Programme
RCSI's Strategic Academic Recruitment (StAR) Programme is an ambitious initiative to accelerate the delivery of innovative, impactful research in the health sciences. Under the StAR Programme, RCSI prioritises the nurturing of research talent through the commitment of a wealth of resources, all focused on a collegial academic and teaching environment that encourages each RCSI researcher to develop and grow. To support the exciting growth of the internationally-leading SFI FutureNeuro Centre for brain disease and its expansion into new research areas, RCSI is seeking an ambitious, visionary researcher to embark with us on the next phase in our research mission in Psychiatry, Neurogenetics or Neurotherapeutics.
SFI FutureNeuro Research Centre, RCSI
FutureNeuro is the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) research centre for chronic and rare neurological disease. Established in 2017 and hosted by RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, our unique research programme brings together 30 investigator teams from the fields of neuroscience, cell and molecular biology, materials chemistry, genetics, drug discovery, gene therapy and data science with clinical expertise in neurology, neurodevelopmental disorders and psychiatry and from eight leading academic institutions and a national research-active clinical network. Our mission is to change the patient journey through multi-disciplinary preclinical and clinical research that addresses how to improve the diagnosis of brain diseases, the implementation of genomics for diagnosis and precision therapy, the development of the next generation of precision and disease-modifying treatments, and the rapid progress of data science that can glean powerful insights from clinical datasets. With a strong foundation in the epilepsies and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), we leverage cross-disease and multidisciplinary expertise to deliver advances in other neurological, psychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders and in the serious co-morbid aspects of these diseases. We collaborate internationally with industry, academic and clinical networks to address mutually-identified scientific challenges which lead to earlier disease detection, more precise treatment, and patient-empowered care pathways and our scientists and clinicians engage with patients, healthcare providers and policy makers to reduce the individual, societal and economic burden of neurological diseases.
FutureNeuro is on track to becoming a world-leading research centre. Since launch, we have delivered extensive research projects, including a substantial number of collaborative projects with industry partners, resulting in over 400 research publications. The Centre has also trained 37 PhDs, led 3 major EU projects, participated in multiple clinical trials, created 2 spin-out companies and delivered over 650 education and public engagement activities. The Centre has reached a value of €44M with plans to grow significantly over the next six years.
Research infrastructures
FutureNeuro researchers have access to world-class research infrastructure and resources. This includes extensive biosample resources for translational research including blood/DNA, plasma, cerebrospinal fluid and brain tissue. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) and GWAS data are available on thousands of deeply phenotyped patients. Molecular and cellular imaging cores feature state-of-the-art instruments including confocal, live, two-photon and super- resolution microscopy. Facilities for electrophysiology enable cell and brain slice recordings, multiple electrode array (MEA) and high-throughput patch clamp (Patchliner). Extensive biomedical research facilities allow breeding/hosting transgenic lines, drug and behavioral studies. There is also access to the clinical research centre (CRC) at Beaumont Hospital.
Our Clinical and Industry Network
FutureNeuro-affiliated clinical neurologists and psychiatrists, spanning the main adult and paediatric hospitals across Ireland, represent the advanced clinical care of patients with neurological, neurodevelopmental and psychiatric diseases. This gives us access to well-defined and stratified patient cohorts for clinical trials. Our patient registers provide granular data to inform diagnostic and therapeutic interventions and our biosample collection and curation programme facilitates genetic diagnosis, precision therapeutics and gene discovery. Our clinician scientists inform the potential translation of research from laboratory to clinic to living room. Ultimately, this national clinical and patient network supports our researchers to develop personalised medicine and individualised care for people living with neurological diseases.
FutureNeuro researchers collaborate with more than 20 different domestic and international industry partners on joint research projects. This includes large multinational companies in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors, through to small and medium enterprises. Currently active projects include the development and testing of novel gene therapies, digital platforms to facilitate genomic diagnoses and clinical trials of therapies and medical devices.
Research breakthroughs by FutureNeuro:
A complete list of FutureNeuro-affiliated publications is available here. Examples of recent breakthroughs and discoveries include 1) performing the largest ever study to identify risk genes for the epilepsies and the detection of new gene variants that predict drug responses; 2) identification of mechanisms driving the neurovascular component of Long COVID; 3) understanding risk prediction in psychosis based on trajectories of childhood symptomatology and adolescent suicidal ideation; 4) tracing the brain cell- specific origins of circulating RNA biomarkers and developing new sustainable materials for biofluid-based biomarker detection; 5) Identification of new post-transcriptional mechanisms regulating neuronal network hyperexcitability; 6) the development of cell type-specific gene therapy tools; 7) clinical trials of innovative medicines and precision therapies and supporting infrastructure. This work has appeared in journals including Nature Genetics, Nature Neuroscience, Nature Communications, Nature Reviews Neurology, World Psychiatry, Annals of Neurology, Proc Natl Acad Sci USA and Current Biology.
Profiles of RCSI-based Lead Investigator Team Members can be found in the job description below.
Objective of this post
As part of the ambitious growth and expansion plans for the FutureNeuro Centre, we are seeking an innovative StAR Lecturer to join the team, complementing the existing strengths at RCSI. RCSI has set a strategic objective to support up-and-coming research leaders to establish world-leading research teams and contribute to the continued development of teaching and world- class research programmes at RCSI.
We are interested in candidates working in any of the fields relevant to the FutureNeuro Centre's remit as described above. Research excellence and leadership potential is the primary focus of the recruitment.
Candidate Profile
We are seeking a candidate with an exceptional track record in research, demonstrated research leadership, a higher degree in a relevant health-related discipline and must come highly recommended by their peers as a candidate of outstanding ability.
The successful candidate must hold a PhD, MD or equivalent in a relevant discipline such as biochemistry, biomedical engineering, physiology, pharmacology, genetics, neurology or psychiatry or related subjects. Candidates must already have demonstrated scientific excellence with clear evidence of independent research leadership evident by highly impactful publications, fellowships and awards received.
The successful applicant will be expected to obtain significant independent principal investigator-led research funding, such as a European Research Council Grant or Wellcome Trust award. In addition, the applicant is expected to publish in leading journals, to supervise PhD students and to participate in undergraduate student teaching and training.
Full details about the candidate profile, and the roles and responsibilities can be found in the job description below.
Application Process:
Applications should be submitted via the RCSI careers portal and should include the following:
Please note the closing date for applications is 14th April 2024.
Interview and presentation:
Shortlisted candidates will be invited for a formal panel-based interview and presentation.
Interviews will take place in May/June 2024.
Informal Enquiries:
Informal enquiries are invited in the first instance through Judy Walsh, Human Resources Department on email at [email protected]