Research Technician

The Gati Lab at the University of Southern California (USC) is seeking highly motivated research technicians to join our interdisciplinary research program focused on G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) biology and pharmacology.

Our research aims to elucidate the structural and mechanistic principles governing GPCR signaling and to translate these insights toward novel therapeutic strategies. We integrate cutting-edge cryo-EM with cell-based pharmacological assays and computational modeling to study GPCRs activated by diverse ligands, including neurotransmitters, peptides, and immune modulators.

Recent work from our lab includes a variety of cutting-edge studies on GPCR structural pharmacology, including:

• the first structures of Class C intermediate states - GABA-B (Shaye et al. 2020, Nature, PMID: ),
• the first structure of an inactive GPCR-BRIL fusion - Fzd5 (Tsutsumi et al. 2020, eLife, PMID: ),
• the first structures of inverse agonist-bound GPCR-G protein complexes - KOR (Tyson et al. 2025, Nature Chemical Biology, PMID: ),
• the first structures of GDP-bound intermediate states of GPCR-G protein complexes, elucidating the activation mechanism and pharmacology of MOR (Khan et al. 2025, Nature, PMID: ).

A more comprehensive list of publications can be found on our website:

The lab is expanding its efforts toward single molecule biophysics and structure-guided drug discovery, leveraging collaborations in computational biology, chemical biology and protein engineering.

If you are passionate about GPCR biology, structural biology, pharmacology, and modern drug discovery, we encourage you to apply.

This is a full-time, on-site role based in Los Angeles, CA for a Research Technician in GPCR structural pharmacology  Research Technician will conduct advanced research in the field of GPCR structural pharmacology, including laboratory experiments, data collection, analysis, and interpretation. The role involves collaboration with a multidisciplinary research team, preparing scientific reports and manuscripts, and presenting findings ponsibilities will also include mentorship or teaching opportunities to support junior researchers or students while contributing to ongoing research projects.

We welcome applicants with experience in at least one or more of the following areas:

• Single particle Cryo-EM
  :
  Single-particle cryo-EM analysis of membrane proteins, including GPCR complexes.