Occupational Summary

Operate and maintain laboratories in a diverse team of engineers in the Department of Biomedical Engineering’s educational laboratories. Work will be primarily focused in our rapidly-expanding biotechnology and cell culture laboratories. A secondary focus will be in our quantitative physiology laboratory.

Work Performed

• Work with a diverse team in Biomedical Engineering to run an extensive array of undergraduate laboratory exercises especially in biotechnology, biology, cellular engineering, and physiology.

• Assist senior staff and faculty in the development of new laboratory exercises for new and existing courses. This includes conducting and evaluating prototype labs, and recommending and/or making necessary changes in materials, techniques, or procedures.

• Maintain order in the laboratories by analyzing lab needs, cleaning, sterilizing, organizing, ordering supplies, maintaining buffers and reagents, maintaining cell lines, and mentoring students in good laboratory hygiene.

• Perform microbiological techniques including cell culture (mammalian, bacterial, yeast), phase microscopy, fluorescent microscopy, and transformation and transfection.

• Perform molecular biology techniques including nucleic acid extraction, polymerase chain reaction, gel electrophoresis, and western blotting.

• Operate and maintain laboratory equipment, e.g., flow cytometer, FPLC, Surface Plasmon Resonance, microscopes, gel imagers, plate readers, thermal cyclers, microfermenters, incubators, and others related to microbiology and genomics.

• Perform basic laboratory duties according to established procedures or instructions to design, develop, construct and test laboratory protocols related to biotechnology design projects performed by students.

• Provide assistance, instruction and consultation to faculty, student researchers and to staff members for resolution of technical and administrative problems; demonstrate techniques for operating specialized equipment.

• Instruct and supervise student teaching assistants (TAs), including planning lab coverage and leading preview sessions to prepare TAs in advance of labs with students.

• Attend laboratory sessions for assigned courses, serving as an expert. These sessions often run into the evening, which requires a flexible schedule.

• Create and maintain copies of laboratory exercises in a suitable format for distribution to students.

• Set up and break down of lab and associated apparatus; ensure adequate quality control.

• Perform research activities in support of various courses and related labs; assist with special projects as assigned.  Support budgeting decisions by analyzing pricing and observing trends.

• Ensure compliance with applicable safety and animal welfare requirements in accordance with Duke University Occupational and Environmental Safety Office, Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee, and Division of Laboratory Animal Resources.

• Mentor and advise students on proper, safe use of laboratory instruments and other laboratory-related issues.

• Keep laboratory facilities and procedures up to date and in keeping with the department's strategic planning.

• Assist as needed in all BME teaching laboratories. This work includes euthanasia of frogs, and occasionally dissection of murine and porcine tissue.

Required Qualifications at this Level

Education:

Work requires knowledge of a diverse set of engineering laboratory exercises, techniques, and procedures generally acquired through completion of a bachelor’s degree in biology or biomedical engineering. Due to professional exemption, equivalent experience cannot be substituted for bachelor's degree

Experience:

None required in additional to education requirements

Skills:

• Excellent analytical, organizational, and communications skills are required.

• Wet lab techniques such as aseptic cell/tissue culture are preferred.

• Ability and desire to learn quickly. 

• At least some of the following: Analytical instrumentation for molecular biology. Stress/strain measurements. Rheometric measurements. Basic electrical measurements, use of oscilloscopes and function generators.