Scientist - Cancer Genome Reconstruction (GIS)

The Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS) is the national flagship for genomic sciences, driving cutting-edge research at the intersection of biology, engineering, and medicine. This position is offered in the Laboratory of AI in Genomics, led by Prof. Mile Sikic, which uses advanced bioinformatics and deep learning approaches to develop next-generation models for genomic data analysis. We are group a of computer scientist with a mission to improve healthcare using advance deep learning models. Located in the heart of Singapore's thriving biomedical hub, GIS offers a dynamic and collaborative environment, with close ties to world-class universities (NUS and NTU), pharmaceutical companies, and biotech start-ups. Joining our team means working on transformative projects with real-world impact, while benefiting from Singapore's vibrant research ecosystem and strong support for innovation.

Project background

De novo genome assembly has been one of the most challenging problems in genomics. However, with development of new long read sequencing technologies, new assemblers and manually curated high quality benchmarks including CHM13, HG002 and I002C assembling most of human chromosomes T2T has become a routine task.

This project will focus on a more challenging task, assembling of human cancer genomes which are especially difficult due to cancer genome heterogeneity. Using the fact that we can reconstruct normal tissue genomes routinely we aim to reconstruct cancer genomes using a combination of traditional algorithms and AI.

Job description

We are looking for a highly motivated postdoctoral researcher to:

• Develop overlap between reads sequences from both cancer and normal genomes
• Simplify cancer genome graphs keeping a both normal genome haplotypes and subclonal haplotypes in a graph

Profile
We welcome applications from candidates with:

• A PhD in computer science, applied mathematics, a related field
• Proven experience in algorithms on genome sequences and graphs
• Publication record at top-tier journals or bioinformatics conferences (i.e. Recomb, ISMB, EECB and Genome Informatics)
• Strong experience in C/C++/Rust and Python programming and solid software engineering skills
• A structured, independent, proactive and collaborative working style

We offer

• A fully funded position with an internationally competitive salary
• Professional development opportunities, including support for grant applications and participation in conferences and workshops
• Access to state-of-the-art research infrastructure, including NSCC's high-performance computing clusters
• A dynamic, interdisciplinary, and collaborative research environment
• The position is initially offered for two years

How to apply

We look forward to receiving your application with the following documents:

• Letter of Motivation
• CV
• Diplomas & Transcripts

We accept applications submitted via email directed to Prof. Sikic at [email protected].

The above eligibility criteria are not exhaustive. A*STAR may include additional selection criteria based on its prevailing recruitment policies. These policies may be amended from time to time without notice. We regret that only shortlisted candidates will be notified.