Postdoctoral Training Fellow

Postdoctoral Training Fellow

Reports to: Dimitrios Anastasiou, Group Leader

This is a fixed-term (3 year), full-time position on Crick terms and conditions of employment.

There is no closing date: position will be filled when a suitable candidate has been identified.

Project summary
We seek a highly motivated and ambitious postdoc to develop novel technologies for shedding light on new biology and shaping drug development for the future.

The project will make use of reactive fragment libraries, which consist of low molecular weight fragments with reactive functional warheads that allow irreversible capture of target proteins. The role of this postdoctoral training fellow will be to characterise the effects of the fragments on cell signalling and metabolism, on a global scale, using a combination of high throughput analytical and genetic methods. The postdoc will then use this information, in collaboration with experts in computational biology and chemoproteomics, to identify and further study novel regulators of cell signalling and metabolism, and how these processes synergize to support functions of normal and cancer cells.

The post is part of a project funded by an EPSRC Prosperity Partnership award that brings together multiple research groups at the Crick and GSK to pioneer use of reactive fragments and high-content screening technologies in cellular disease model systems (https://www.crick.ac.uk/news/2021-04-02_francis-crick-institute-and-gsk-to-pioneer-reactive-fragment-screening-in-drug-discovery ). The postdoc will thus be part of a dynamic, multi-disciplinary team working in an integrated academia–industry setting.

The Research Group
The role will be based in the laboratories of Dr. Michael Howell (Crick High Throughput Screening Facility) and Dr. Dimitrios Anastasiou, (Cancer Metabolism Laboratory). Dr. Howell’s laboratory uses state-of-the-art high throughput approaches to study a broad range of biological problems. Dr. Anastasiou’s research investigates the fundamental mechanisms that regulate healthy cellular and whole-body metabolism and how disruption of these mechanisms contributes to cancer development and metabolic liver disease. To this end, the lab uses a multidisciplinary approach that includes mouse models of liver disease and cancer, metabolomics, stable isotope-labelled tracers to measure metabolic activities in vivo, computational modelling and protein biochemistry. The postdoc will also have the opportunity to interact with the group of Dr. Caroline Hill who are performing analogous screens that focus on the roles of TGF-β family signalling pathways in normal physiology and in cancer.

Key responsibilities
Postdocs are expected to lead their own projects, contribute to other projects on a collaborative basis (both in the lab and with external collaborators) and guide PhD students in their research. The ability to work in a team is essential.

Key experience and competencies
The post holder should embody and demonstrate our core Crick values: bold, imaginative, open, dynamic and collegial, in addition to the following:

Essential

PhD (or in the final stages of submission) in biochemistry, cell/cancer biology, physiology or related discipline
Excellent knowledge and experience in cancer biology and/or metabolism
Technical expertise in tissue culture, imaging, molecular biology, and gene perturbation
A track record of high productivity in the laboratory, supported by publications in peer-reviewed journals
Good oral and written communication skills evidenced by data presentation at scientific meetings
Experience of experimental design and project management
Ability to work independently and also as part of a team
Eagerness to work in an interdisciplinary environment at the interface between academia and industry
Desirable

Technical expertise in performing high content screens/high content imaging
Practical experience with studying cellular signalling and metabolism
Experience in integrating large amounts of data from multiple platforms
Knowledge of chemical biology
Find out what benefits the Crick has to offer:

For more information on our great pay and benefits package please click here: https://www.crick.ac.uk/careers-and-study/life-at-the-crick/pay-and-benefits

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion:

We welcome applications from all backgrounds. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities, regardless of ethnicity, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, pregnancy, age, disability, or civil partnership, marital or family status. We particularly welcome applications from people who are Minority Ethnic as they are currently underrepresented in the Crick at this level.

Diversity is essential to excellence in scientific endeavour. It increases breadth and perspective, leading to more innovation and creativity. We want the Crick to be a place where everyone feels valued and where diversity is celebrated and seen as part of the foundation for our Institute’s success.

The Crick is committed to creating equality of opportunity and promoting diversity and inclusivity. We all share in the responsibility to actively promote dignity, respect, inclusivity and equal treatment and it is our aim to ensure that these principles are reflected and implemented in all strategies, policies and practices.

Read more on our website: https://www.crick.ac.uk/careers-and-study/life-at-the-crick/equality-diversity-and-inclusion