Postdoctoral Fellow

Location: The Francis Crick Institute, London

Contract: 4 yr FTC/Full time – 2 posts available

Salary: From £45,500 pa with benefits, dependent on skills and experience

About us…  

The Francis Crick Institute is Europe’s largest biomedical research institute under one roof. Our world-class scientists and staff collaborate on vital research to help prevent, diagnose and treat illnesses such as cancer, heart disease, infectious diseases and neurodegenerative conditions. 

To learn more about the Crick, click here.

About the role… 

The Costa lab currently hosts nine researchers from eight different countries. We focus on the molecular mechanisms of eukaryotic chromosome replication with two main areas of investigation:

• Relication initiation – funded by an 8-year Wellcome Discovery Award starting in September 2025.
• Chromatin replication and epigenetic inheritance – currently funded by the Francis Crick Institute.

We employin vitro reconstitution with purified proteins (yeast and human) and isolation of endogenous DNA-processing machineries (Xenopus).  We use a combination of biochemical and single-particle cryo-EM approaches. We are currently also developing in situ cryo-tomography imaging of replicating nuclei established with frog egg extracts. 

We are looking for individuals who share our passion for molecular mechanisms of fundamental cellular processes. Biochemists, molecular biologists and structural biologists (including cryo-tomography scientists) are encouraged to apply. 

Click here for further information on the lab and published papers. 

What you will be doing…  

As a Postdoc, you will:   

• using biochemical approaches to reconstitute and/or isolate endogenous replisome assemblies for structural studies.
• validating structures obtained with cryo-EM by generating protein variants for biochemical and fluorescence-based activity assays.
• studying spatial and temporal organisation of replication factories in situ with cryo-tomography.  

About you…  

The essential criteria you will bring…  

• PhD in biochemistry, structural biology, biophysics or related fields.
• Experience in molecular biology and protein purification.
• Technical expertise in biochemical reconstitution or fluorescence imaging technology.
• Experience in establishing biochemical assays.
• Track record of writing papers as evidenced by publications or submitted manuscripts in referred journals.
• Evidence of data presentation at scientific meetings.

To see the complete job description, click here.

To learn more about the team/Group Leader, click here. 

About Working at the Crick… 

Our values  

• We are bold. We make space for creative, dynamic and imaginative ideas and approaches. We’re not afraid to do things differently. 
• We are open. We’re highly collaborative and interactive, and make sure our activities are visible to the outside world. 
• We are collegial. We show respect for one another, work cooperatively and support the wider community. 

At the Crick we believe that diversity and inclusion are essential to driving innovation and scientific discovery.

We are a Disability Confident employer. Please contact People@crick.ac.uk for assistance.

Read more about our EDI approach here.   

What will you receive?  

We value our team members and are proud to offer an extensive range of benefits to support their well-being and development. You can find out more here.

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