Research Associate in Design and Characterisation of 2D Protein Arrays

The role

A post-doctoral position is available to work as part of a collaborative Advanced Research + Invention Agency-funded project. Your part of the project would be to design, produce and characterise extended 2-dimensional protein arrays from de novo designed protein components.

The post will be held in the Boyle and Woolfson group based in the School of Chemistry at the University of Bristol. The other collaborators involved in the project, Prof. Mark Wallace, Dr. Wayne Dickson, and Dr. Aliaksandra Rakovich are all from King’s College London (KCL) and as such, the job will require regular travel to London and active collaboration with other postdocs on the grant (6 in total).

We are therefore seeking a motivated early-career researcher with experience in protein design and cryo-EM or AFM who is willing to work as part of an interdisciplinary team. 

What will you be doing?

Specifically, this project will create extended, ordered, 2D protein arrays that could be used for applications such as photonics and filtration. Your role would be to create these arrays based on de novo alpha-helical barrel proteins recently designed by the group (Nature Chemical Biology 20, 991-999 (2024)). These proteins will need to be programmed to assemble in a specific, ordered fashion and as such, you will need to characterise these arrays using techniques such as cryo-EM and AFM. Ultimately, these arrays will be used for photonics and filtration applications, and you will also be required to create functionalised proteins that can be incorporated into these arrays. 

You should apply if

The position would be suited to a talented, ambitious early career researcher with an interest in de novo protein design and microscopy (i.e. AFM and/or cryo-EM).  Essential skills for the role include experience with the design or engineering and production of natural or de novo proteins; and the biophysical and structural characterisation of proteins, including experience with cryo-EM, AFM, or crystallography. 

Additional information

Contract type: Open ended with fixed funding until 31/08/2029

Work pattern: 35 hours/week

Grade: I

Salary: £39,906-£44,746 per annum

School/Unit: School of Chemistry

Shift pattern: Monday - Friday 

This advert will close at 23:59 UK time on 10th September 2026

For informal queries please contact: Aimee Boyle: aimee.boyle@bristol.ac.uk

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