The consultant will support the Animal Production and Health Laboratory (APHL) in modernizing its bioinformatics
infrastructure. Key responsibilities include configuring research servers into a High-Performance Computing (HPC)
cluster and deploying a local Galaxy instance to enhance pipeline accessibility.
The consultant will establish automated workflows for Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS), Shotgun Metagenomics,
and Metatranscriptomics, utilizing Machine Learning (ML) and advanced bioinformatics. These pipelines must
support multiple platforms, including Oxford Nanopore, Ion Torrent, PacBio, and ilium ina.
A major focus is capacity building for the November 2026 APHL course. The consultant will develop a dedicated
Virtual Machine (VM) and syntax-highlighted instructional materials. These efforts strengthen APHL's role as a World
Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) Collaborating Centre and support the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) network, enabling high-quality genomic analysis and disease diagnosis for Member States.
Functions / Key Results Expected
1. Provide technical expertise in establishing automated pipelines for the analysis and visualization of WGS, Shotgun Metagenomic, and Metatranscriptomic datasets.
2. Carry out an analysis for Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS), Shotgun Metagenomic, and Metatranscriptomic data utilizing advanced bioinformatics and Machine Learning (ML) tools.
3. Provide technical input to Configure research and training servers into a high-performance computer cluster optimized for large-scale data analysis.
4. Provide expertise in deploying a local instance of Galaxy on research servers and migrate existing APHL pipelines into Galaxy Workflows to enhance accessibility for APHL staff.
5. Contribute to the update of current APHL bioinformatics pipelines to support data analysis for Oxford Nanopore, Ion Torrent (S5), PacBio, and Iliumina platforms.
6. Provide technical expertise in preparing comprehensive training materials for the APHL course scheduled for November 2026.
7. Develop a dedicated Virtual Machine (VM) pre-loaded with necessary software and create syntax-highlighted instructional materials to ensure effective learning for trainees.
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
8. Animal Diseases
Qualifications and Experience
9. Advanced university degree (masters) in Genomics/ Bioinformatics or another related field.
10. Minimum five years of experience in bioinformatics training and capacity building on data analysis pipelines, bacterial and
viral genomics, and machine learning methods for disease prediction.
11. Strong background in High-Performance Computing facility management.
12. Good oral and written command of English. Knowledge of other official IAEA languages (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish) is an asset.
Remuneration
The remuneration for this consultancy is a daily fee of up to a maximum of € 260, based on qualifications and experience. In case duty travel is required within the assignment, a daily subsistence allowance (DSA) and travel costs are provided. Health coverage and pension fund are the responsibility of the incumbent.