Research Fellow in Biophysics

About us

The Chemistry Department at UCL is one of the top-ranked departments in the UK, with 100% of its outputs ranked as being world-leading (4*) or internationally excellent (3*) in the recent REF2021. The Department is committed to supporting excellence in both research and teaching. We specialise in areas of organic synthesis, chemical biology, computational chemistry, nanotechnology, inorganic and materials chemistry, physical chemistry and chemical physics. The department research income derived from many sources including UKRI (EPSRC, BBSRC, MRC, and NERC), European Commission and a wide range of charities and industrial partners in the UK, Europe and the USA. Details about our research can be found on the departmental website: http://www.ucl.ac.uk/chemistry

About the role

We are seeking to appoint a Postdoctoral Researcher to join a research team on developing new antimicrobials at University College London. In this project, you will join a pioneering interdisciplinary research strategy to understand the structure-function relationship of antimicrobial peptide nisin and its interaction with its biological binding partner lipid II. You will conduct biophysical research on the assembly of nisin membrane pores using single-channel current recordings and fluorescence-based approaches. The insight will help guide the formation of new synthetic antimicrobials. The biophysical work will be supervised by Prof. Stefan Howorka in the Department of Chemistry at UCL (www.howorkalab.com) in collaboration with Prof. Alethea Tabor. The post is funded by the EPSRC for up to 24 months and start date is as soon as possible.

About you

The successful candidate will have a PhD degree (or will have submitted their thesis prior to taking up the position) in Biophysics or Life-Science studies and possess experience in the following areas: electrophysiology by means of single-channel current recording including patch-clamping. Prior experience in fluorescence confocal laser scanning microscopy, lipid bilayer biophysics including formation of membrane vesicles, and molecular biology is desirable. To apply and to access the Job Description and Person Specification can be please click the ‘Apply’. In addition to the application form, please submit a CV, list of publications and a cover letter. Please note, appointment at Grade 7 (£38,308 - £46,155 per annum, including London Allowance) is dependent upon having been awarded a PhD; if this is not the case, initial appointment will be at Research Assistant Grade 6B (salary £34,502 - £36,348 per annum, including London Allowance of £4,000 p.a.) with payment at Grade 7 being backdated to the date of final submission of the PhD thesis.

Advert information