Animal Biologist (Small Animal/Mice) (51639)

Job Details

• Level: Experienced
• Job Location: National Institutes of Health (NIH) - Main Campus/Bethesda - Bethesda, MD 20892
• Position Type: Full Time
• Education Level: Bachelors Degree
• Salary Range: $75,000.00 - $120,000.00 Salary/year
• Travel Percentage: None
• Job Shift: Day
• Job Category: Public Health

Position Objective: This dual Laboratory Manager and Research Biologist role allocates 60% of effort to lab management and 40% to research. The objective is to ensure seamless operations while advancing the scientific mission. Management duties include assisting in onboarding new personnel into the group, overseeing equipment, SOPs, waste, and physical/electronic inventories. Key functions include coordinating procurement, reagent handling/recording upon receipt, and optimizing resource organization and comprehensive mouse colony management. Scientific responsibilities involve primary tissue culture, tissue sectioning, staining, microscopy, troubleshooting, and training of new personnel.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Coordinate husbandry, animal care and enrichment activities to maintain a clean, safe and regulatory compliant animal research program.
• Work with staff to manage and conduct behavioral training and testing of animals for users of the Section.
• Conduct animal behavioral testing, including T‑maze, step down, conditioned place preference/aversion, oral, inhalation and intravenous drug self‑administration, forced‑swim test, hot‑plate, tail‑flick, vonFrey, locomotion, elevated plus maze, open‑field, novel object recognition, ultrasonic vocalization recording and startle reflex.
• Work with staff to maintain, breed, genotype and phenotype transgenic animal colony; maintain records of animal colony.
• Develop and maintain a spreadsheet of animal breeding records; record lineage, genotype, birth, death and experimental use of each animal.
• Set up animals to be available in numbers and at the time required.
• Update animal protocol through the submission of amendments and submission of new animal protocols to ensure necessary animal work for experiments.
• Provide technical expertise in breeding colony management.
• Develop and maintain a breeding database to record all animals in the breeding colony.
• Anticipate animal needs for lab research and colony maintenance; adjust the number of breeding pairs accordingly.
• Determine best type of breeding units to set up for lab needs, including but not limited to continuous pairs, harems, and timed pregnancies.
• Manage and breed animal colonies; genotype animals and report genotyping results to staff.
• Communicate and collaborate with investigators regarding colony and support duties.
• Handle animals for hormone injection, mating, timed mating, and other experimental procedures.
• Handle, dissect and euthanize animals.
• Maintain animal colony, including general husbandry, breeding, plug checks, weaning, tagging animals and obtaining tail or ear snips for genotyping, and euthanasia.
• Handle experimental animals including tail vein injections, administration of anesthesia and monitoring of animal viral signs.
• Perform skilled routine surgical procedures in support of ongoing animal studies.
• Develop new surgical or animal handling techniques as needed to support projects.
• Perform complex surgical techniques, necropsies, blood and tissue sample collection.
• Prepare animals for surgery and ensure proper disposal of animal carcasses.
• Maintain animal lines in transgenic facilities.
• Perform experiments with primary tissues and cells in culture, utilizing sterile techniques.
• Harvest and collect animal embryos, tissues, and organs.
• Perform a variety of specialized tissue fixation, embedding, sectioning and staining techniques.
• Manage genotyping of samples of transgenic animals.
• Perform analysis of animal tissues; prepare frozen slices and paraffin sections, appropriately stained to demonstrate normal and abnormal structures.
• Perform tissue and cell culture; use sterile technique.
• Perform tissue culture and related techniques including primary cells, such as human fibroblasts; maintain IPSC lines.
• Perform standard molecular biology techniques, including, but not limited to, cloning, in situ hybridization and qPCR.
• Maintain cell lines and perform basic cell culture assays, including, but not limited to, transfection and immunocytochemistry.
• Perform light and confocal microscopy.
• Perform apoptosis assays, qtr‑PCR, Western blotting, immunohistochemistry and molecular cloning techniques.
• Work with staff to process tissue for immunohistochemistry.
• Perform Western Blot, immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence.
• Isolate and purify nucleic acid and proteins from tissue culture samples.
• Update and maintain laboratory notebooks and databases; collect, analyze and interpret data.
• Perform quantitative analysis; data analysis, figure preparation, and image acquisition; maintain complete and detailed records of all experiments.
• Collect, organize and record experimental data for publication and future reference by others.
• Collect, review, research, and analyze large datasets; perform experiments, utilizing various statistical applications and methods; and interpret data, assemble data into figures, and enter data into a database.
• Maintain records of experimental results; work with staff to analyze and interpret data; prepare summaries of laboratory findings.
• Perform computer analysis and use computer software to prepare images.
• Prepare abstracts and present posters.
• Participate and collaborate in the preparation of scientific publications for peer reviewed journals based on the results.
• Document information on procedures, modifications and methods for input into final publication and presentations of findings at meetings.
• Work with staff on the preparation of data and images for use in research presentations and publications.
• Write and edit drafts for journal submission; read manuscript drafts of other laboratory members.
• Edit and write research papers and protocols.
• Work with staff on the modification of laboratory protocols and experiments based on literature findings.
• Search and review literature related to project; summarize and evaluate findings.
• Document all laboratory procedures, experiments and results; maintain and update laboratory notebooks and databases.
• Develop, validate, perform and interpret a variety of complex experimental techniques and procedures; work with staff to develop procedures addressing new animal study needs, logistics, modifications to standard operating procedures, and/or existing guidelines to resolve technical problems.
• Participate in developing and performing experiments, organizing protocols and performing technical troubleshooting.
• Locate and review the literature pertinent to projects to identify the most applicable protocols and methods; perform experiments in accordance with protocols.
• Manage oversight and progress of critical results in animal‑based experiments including evaluating goal‑specific phenotypes of animals; collaborate with Primary investigators and other experimental team members to determine, evaluate and discuss the progress of projects.
• Log receipt storage details of new reagents to ensure proper handling and safe storage.
• Daily attend weekly lab meetings and contribute to scientific discussion.
• Weekly update mouse colony database with breeding, genotyping, and cohort data.
• Bi‑weekly update electronic and physical inventory logs and track laboratory orders.
• Bi‑weekly document chemical/biological waste disposal and safety compliance checks.
• Weekly maintain personal Lab Archives record of all laboratory work and primary data generated.
• Daily log equipment maintenance, service records, and troubleshooting requirements/updates.
• Submit documented training logs for newly onboarded lab personnel.
• Provide summary report of lab operations, progress and resolved issues.
• Weekly review, and finalize optimized experimental protocols and SOPs.
• Hold at least one formal 1‑on‑1 meeting with PI; generate summary action items.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Biological Sciences, Neuroscience is required.
• Experience with Adobe Acrobat Professional is required.
• Skilled in GraphPad Prism (or equivalent) and advanced Microsoft Excel functions is required.
• Microsoft Office suite (Word, Excel, Outlook, Powerpoint, Teams) advanced proficiency required.
• Experience in operation of fluorescent or confocal microscopes.
• Skilled in tissue sectioning (cryostat), histological staining and immunofluorescence/immunohistochemistry.
• Skilled in primary tissue culture using sterile techniques.
• Coordinate mouse genotyping (via Transnetyx) and maintain animal records.
• Comprehensive mouse colony management and breeding.
• Coordinate procurement and track laboratory orders.
• Maintain detailed electronic and physical lab inventories.
• Manage chemical and biological waste per safety protocols.

Preferred Qualifications

• Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) development preferred.
• Generalized Laboratory Safety Certification preferred.
• Training and certification in chemical/biological waste management preferred.
• Experience with SharePoint interface preferred, ELNs such as LabArchives.
• Experience with Quartzy for reagent tracking, protocol documentation etc. preferred.
• Familiarity with standard proprietary microscope platforms (e.g., ZEN, LASX, NIS‑Elements) preferred.
• Experience in image analysis software such as ImageJ/FIJI, Imaris, CellProfiler preferred.
• Experience with colony management databases (e.g., SoftMouse, Transnetyx, FileMaker Pro custom databases) preferred.
• Adobe Photoshop Illustrator preferred.
• Strong communication skills, both oral and written.
• Detail‑oriented and possess strong organizational skills with the ability to prioritize multiple tasks and projects.

Essential Functions and Accommodations

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed above are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

EEO Statement

Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, protected veteran status or other characteristics protected by law.

Additional Information

This position is contingent upon contract award.