Research Assistant – Chemistry - 1885

View Vacancy -- Research Assistant – Chemistry - 1885
Open Date
01/07/2022, 00:00
Close Date
24/07/2022, 23:55
Research Institute  
NATA
Research Institute / Unit Information  

The Medical Research Council (MRC), as part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), have invested a total of £30m over 4 years through the Strategic Priorities Fund to establish a nucleic acid therapy accelerator (NATA) that will support state-of-the-art interdisciplinary research to solve critical issues in nucleic acid drug delivery, through focused NATA research challenges and a NATA infrastructure hub.

The NATA will focus on bringing together key stakeholders around the infrastructure hub while catalysing collaborative R&D activity with focused support to tackle significant barriers facing oligonucleotide therapy delivery to key organs. This investment will support capacity building in terms of equipment, upskilling and domain expertise that will be essential in developing critical mass to catalyse and de-risk the development of next generation nucleic acid therapeutics.

UK Research and Innovation is a new entity that brings together nine partners to create an independent organisation with a strong voice for research and innovation, more information can be found at www.ukri.org
Band  
MRC - 5
Location  
Harwell Campus, Oxfordshire
Salary  
£25,798
Contract Type  
Permanent
Job Type  
Science
Full Time / Part Time  
Full Time
Job Description  

The Medical Research Council (MRC), as part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), has invested a total of £30m over 4 years through the Strategic Priorities Fund to establish a nucleic acid therapy accelerator (NATA) that will support state-of-the-art interdisciplinary research to solve critical issues in nucleic acid drug delivery, through focused NATA research challenges and a NATA infrastructure hub.

The NATA will focus on bringing together key stakeholders around the infrastructure hub while catalysing collaborative R&D activity with focused support to tackle significant barriers facing oligonucleotide therapy delivery to key organs. This investment will support capacity building in terms of equipment, upskilling and domain expertise that will be essential in developing critical mass to catalyse and de-risk the development of next generation nucleic acid therapeutics.

The Role

The Research Assistant will be a key member of the NATA Chemistry Team synthesising and developing new therapeutic oligonucleotides for various translational and collaborative projects. The individual will operate and maintain the oligonucleotide synthesizers, purify materials using HPLC and perform Quality Control on LC-MS. The individual will work with other team members to ensure the smooth running of the NATA chemistry laboratory including oligonucleotides database implementation, chemicals inventory and equipment maintenance. We are looking to recruit 3 roles.

Main Responsibilities

• Operating and maintenance of oligonucleotide synthesisers
• Operating HPLC purification systems
• Manage instruments, reagents and chemical resources efficiently
• Troubleshoot and maintain procedures and instrumentation
• Carry out quality control and prepare data sheets
• Assist in chemical synthesis of new building blocks for oligonucleotides
• Effectively manage resources
• Support the Lab Manager undertaking lab management duties such as lab and equipment maintenance, health and safety administration, reagent inventory and relevant databases
• Take a proactive approach to learning and implementing new techniques and methods
• Keep excellent scientific records and implement databases
• Contribute to lab meetings
• Maintain a good knowledge of the relevant literature

Person Specification  

• Hold a relevant degree in chemistry or related field
• Experience of working in a laboratory, preferably organic chemistry or oligonucleotide synthesis
• Expertise in organic chemistry and/or nucleic acid chemistry
• Knowledge/experience of solid phase synthesis (oligonucleotides or peptides)
• Knowledge/experience of HPLC purification systems
• Knowledge/experience of LC-MS analysis of molecules, preferably nucleic acids
• Knowledge/experience of quantification of nucleic acids
• Experience in data analysis and interpretation
• Ability to write scientifically
• Capable of critical thinking
• Working and adhering to standard operating procedures and experience of process analysis and refinement
• Organised, hard-working with a strong eye for detail and able to work as part of a team
• Flexible and adaptable, able to manage changing priorities
• Willingness to learn
• Good communication skills and effective engagement with colleagues and collaborators

The MRC is a great place to work and progress your career, be it in scientific research or the support functions.The MRC is a unique working environment where our researchers are rewarded by world class innovation and collaboration opportunities that the MRC name brings. The MRC is an excellent place to develop yourself further and a range of training & development opportunities will be available to you, including professional registration with the Science Council.
Choosing to come to work at the MRC (part of UKRI) means that you will have access to a whole host of benefits from a defined benefit pension scheme and excellent holiday entitlement to access to employee shopping/travel discounts and salary sacrifice cycle to work scheme, as well as the chance to put the MRC and UKRI on your CV in the future.
Our success is dependent upon our ability to embrace diversity and draw on the skills, understanding and experience of all our people. We welcome applications from all sections of the community irrespective of gender, race, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, sexual orientation, disability or age. As "Disability Confident" employers, we guarantee to interview all applicants with disabilities who meet the minimum criteria for the vacancy.
UKRI supports research in areas that include animal health, agriculture and food security, and bioscience for health which includes research on animals, genetic modification and stem cell research. Whilst you may not have direct involvement in this type of research, you should consider whether this conflicts with your personal values or beliefs.
We will conduct a full and comprehensive pre-employment check as an essential part of the recruitment process on all individuals that are offered a position with UKRI. This will include a security check and an extreme organisations affiliation check.