Wednesday, April 17, 2013

We have an exciting opportunity for a biochemist/biophysicist/crystallographer to join the Structure & Biophysics group at AstraZeneca in Waltham, MA. This is a collaborative effort with the laboratory of Professor Jamie Cate at the University of California Berkeley to understand the structural basis of mechanism-based toxicity to antibiotic treatment. Success in generating chimeric ribosomes will result in novel means to assess antibacterial sensitivity using a suite of genetic, biochemical and biophysical approaches.

This position provides an opportunity to explore the gene-to-structure process in an industrial setting. You'll be exposed to a variety of aspects within the drug discovery cascade, and will interact with scientists in a cross-disciplinary environment. You'll also be expected to deliver your novel research results within AstraZeneca, and externally via scientific conferences and peer-reviewed publications.

Your major responsibilities


* Build an understanding of antibiotic selectivity for the bacterial ribosome through the design and analysis of the functional activity of chimeric ribosomes
* Assess the antibacterial sensitivity of recombinant bacterial strains containing chimeric ribosomes against a panel of known ribosomal inhibitors
* Understand the structural basis of ribosomal inhibitor selectivity by performing crystallography on chimeric ribosomes in complex with antibiotics
* Work collaboratively with scientists across various disciplines to achieve project objectives
* Externally present results at scientific conferences, and publish scientific papers in high quality peer-reviewed journals


Minimum experience

A PhD in one or more of the following areas:


* Protein/RNA biochemistry
* Biophysics, crystallography, ribosome biology, molecular microbiology


Preferred experience/requirements


* Molecular biology, expression and purification skills to independently produce high-quality RNA-protein complexes
* Experience with multiple biochemical and biophysical techniques to assess the quality, stability and function of RNA-protein complexes
* Experience in performing antibacterial sensitivity assays
* Experience in designing complex reagents for biophysical and crystallographic studies
* Crystallographic experience is highly desirable
* Strong written and oral communication skills

Apply Now