Advanced Therapeutics Postdoctoral Research Associate; Engineered Genetic Control Systems

Overview

Grade UE07: £41,064 - £48,822 per annum pro-rata if part-time

College of Science and Engineering / School of Biological Sciences

Full-time: 35 hours per week

Fixed-term: for 36 months

We are looking to employ a postdoctoral researcher on a 36-month contract to join the research group of Professor Susan Rosser, chair of synthetic biology at the University of Edinburgh Centre for Engineering Biology to work on development of gene switches for use in gene therapy. The selected researcher will join an internationally recognised, friendly, diverse, inclusive and enthusiastic team. You will become part of the Engineered Genetic Control Systems for Advanced Therapeutics Hub ().

The hub, directed by Prof Rosser, is a £14M 5-year UKRI sponsored research program across 4 institutions (Edinburgh, Oxford, Imperial, CRUK SI) pioneering engineering biology for advanced therapeutics. It is developing novel genetic tools to render gene therapies safe and effective, with initial focus on oncology, cardiovascular diseases and rare diseases.

This specific role involves developing and experimentally validating engineered genetic switches at the transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels, such as synthetic promoters and riboswitches, for gene therapy applications. The successful candidate will have experience in synthetic biology approaches and expertise in mammalian cell engineering and RNA biology.

The post holder will have many opportunities for multidisciplinary collaborative working with academic colleagues from the different institutional partners and industry. This includes training and professional development opportunities arising from being embedded and working with communities of translational scientists.

This post offers an excellent opportunity for academic career advancement in a world-renowned centre of excellence for synthetic/engineering biology. The University of Edinburgh hosts a large diverse, dynamic and multidisciplinary engineering biology community of more than 50 research groups. The University of Edinburgh’s synthetic biology facilities are second-to-none, and include the Edinburgh Genome Foundry and Edinomics.

Applicants must have a PhD in synthetic/engineering biology, molecular biology, RNA biology for appointment at Research Associate level. Applicants close to completion of their PhDs will also be considered where experience is directly relevant. Please see the job description and person specification document associated with this advert for the full list of criteria.

This post is advertised as full-time (35 hours per week), however, we are open to considering part-time or flexible working patterns.

• PhD (or completion within 3 months) in engineering biology or related subject with synthetic/engineering biology experience.
• Experience in engineering biology, RNA biology and molecular biology.
• Experience in mammalian Cell Engineering.
• Experience in the design and application of gene control systems, including synthetic promoters and/or riboswitches.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with ability to build rapport with colleagues and collaborators.

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