Postdoctoral Scientist/ Career Development Fellow
Salary Range £32,302 to £35,143 per annum
Fixed term, 3 years
MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK
The MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology (LMB) is a world leader in biological research, with an expanding scientific programme dedicated to understanding gene function in health and disease. It provides an unsurpassed environment for both young and established researchers. Scientists are drawn to the LMB from all over the world, creating a lively and international community for the exchange of ideas and technical innovation.
This position is for a protein biochemist and structural biologist to work in Dr Anne Bertolotti’s group in collaboration with Dr Kelly Nguyen’s group. You will be responsible for expressing, purifying phosphatases and solving their structures using a combination of approaches primarily cryoEM, mass spectrometry (in collaboration with the LMB mass spectrometry facility), crystallography and NMR (in collaboration with the LMB NMR facility). You will also conduct functional studies in vitro.
Dr Anne Bertolotti’s pioneering research programme focuses on innovative approaches to rescue cells from protein misfolding, a condition at the origin of many human diseases, including neurodegenerative diseases. One of such approaches consists in selective inhibition of phosphatases, an important discovery because phosphatases were thought to be undruggable before this work (see Tsaytler et al., 2011, Science, 332, 91-4; and Das et al., 2015, Science, 348, 239-242, Carrara, M., Sigurdardottir, A., & Bertolotti, A. (2017). Nat Struct Mol Biol, 24(9), 708–716). Krzyzosiak, A., Sigurdardottir, A. et al., A. (2018). Cell, 174(5), 1216–1228.e19.)
Dr Kelly Nguyen’s group studies structures and mechanisms of macromolecular complexes involved in telomeres maintenance in eukaryotes (Nature. 2021 May;593(7859):449-453). Her group has renowned expertise in a range of techniques including biochemistry, cryo-EM, X-ray crystallography and in vivo functional studies.
You will join a strong inter-disciplinary team at the LMB which has broad expertise extending from biochemistry, structural, chemical, molecular and cell biology through to transgenic animal models of degenerative diseases. We also have an excellent record of innovative basic research leading to applications in medicine. You will be responsible for the structural analyses of phosphatase complexes.
Further information about the position may be obtained from Dr Anne Bertolotti – email:
[email protected].
You will be ambitious, hard-working, creative and fearless. You will have a PhD in biochemistry or due to complete doctoral studies within 6 months of applying. Relevant experience is required and this must be best attested by at least one impactful publication. Experience in biochemistry and structural biology is essential.
You will enjoy interacting with a dynamic interdisciplinary team sharing a passion for science and a commitment to explore the unknown.
The successful applicant will be awarded a 3-year Career Development Fellowship/ Postdoctoral Training Scheme position. This is a training and development position for a Postdoctoral Scientist who has recently completed their doctoral studies, is moving into a new research discipline or has limited experience of key transferable skills. The MRC LMB has excellent scientific core facilities and training opportunities.
The MRC LMB is a research institute within UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). UKRI is an 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.
Working for UKRI MRC provides a whole host of benefits including a defined benefit pension scheme, excellent holiday entitlement (40 ½ days including bank holidays and privilege days) and Benenden Healthcare membership. You will also have access to employee shopping/ travel discounts, on site sport and social facilities, as well as a salary sacrifice scheme for cycle to work.
Closing date: 13/02/2022
Final appointments will be subject to a pre-employment screening.
The Medical Research Council is an Equal Opportunities Employer who participates in the Disability Confident scheme.
