Research Associate/ Senior Research Associate in AI-Enabled Enzyme Engineering for PET Biorecycling

The Environmental Biotechnology Innovation Centre (EBIC), of which ICOS is a member, brings together scientists from leading UK institutions in a mission to engineer the properties and functions of microorganisms, creating more effective ways to monitor the environment, remove pollutants and support a circular bioeconomy.

We are seeking a Research Associate or Senior Research Associate to manage the experimental delivery of an AI- and bioinformatics-augmented, high-throughput platform for discovering and engineering enzymes that depolymerise polyethylene terephthalate (PET). PETase-like sequences will be prioritised, expressed, screened and improved through rapid Design-Build-Test-Learn (DBTL) cycles.

You will combine synthetic biology, enzyme engineering, and bioinformatics to improve PETase, MHETase/BHETase, and PET-binding modules for PET degradation.

You will work closely with Professor Natalio Krasnogor, the wider ICOS and EBIC teams and international collaborators at PROIMI-CONICET in Argentina. You will establish reproducible protocols and structured data capture, coordinate delivery against milestones, publish high-quality research and help translate the platform towards industrially credible PET valorisation. Appointment at Senior Research Associate level will reflect a stronger record of independent management, supervision, partnership working, translation, research development and commercial/industrial experience.

This post includes travel within the UK and internationally, including visits to collaborator laboratories and conferences, as required for the project and subject to reasonable adjustments.

A completed doctorate in a relevant discipline is essential for appointment at either level.

This role is full time, fixed term for a period up to 31.03.29.

Key Accountabilities (Research Associate and Senior Research Associate):

- Steer the development of an end-to-end, experimental reproducible workflow for PETase discovery and optimisation, from candidate sequence to experimentally validated enzyme performance
- Apply bioinformatic filtering, active-site and motif analysis, structure prediction, clustering and diversity-aware selection to prioritise compost-metagenome-derived PETase-like sequences supplied by project partners
- Design and construct expression libraries using molecular cloning, heterologous microbial hosts and high-throughput cell-free expression; establish quality controls for expression, activity and strain or construct validation
- Plan and execute rational, directed-evolution and AI-guided enzyme engineering cycles targeting thermostability, catalytic efficiency, substrate engagement and performance on solid PET and capture all strain engineering steps in CellRepo
- Develop and validate a tiered screening stack and assays on real post-consumer materials
- Implement and troubleshoot automated, miniaturised workflows using platforms such as Opentrons OT-2, acoustic liquid handling and microarray or plate-based robotics, with robust design-of-experiments and batch-effect controls
- Capture experimental results as analysis-ready, provenance-rich datasets and close successive DBTL loops by using the data to update candidate ranking and mutation-selection strategies
- Evaluate PETase, MHETase/BHETase and PET-directed binding-module combinations, quantify synergy and identify conditions relevant to scalable monomer recovery and circular upcycling routes
- Analyse data rigorously, including kinetics, uncertainty, reproducibility and cross-platform or cross-site comparability; maintain excellent laboratory records, code, protocols and standard operating procedures
- Work collaboratively across biology, chemistry, engineering, computing and industrial translation; coordinate experiments and exchange of materials and data with EBIC and international partners
- Communicate results through peer-reviewed papers, technical reports, conference presentations, stakeholder activities and responsible public engagement, while observing safety, research integrity, data management and Responsible Research and Innovation requirements
- Willingness and ability to travel within the UK and internationally, including visits to collaborator laboratories and conferences

Additionally, for Senior Research Associate:

- Provide scientific and technical management for major work packages, defining priorities, decision criteria, risks, resources and delivery plans across the computational, automation and wet-laboratory components
- Coordinate partner-facing delivery and translate platform outputs into decision-grade evidence for biofoundry, enzyme-technology, recycling and other industrial stakeholders
- Mentor and supervise researchers and students, establish inclusive and reproducible working practices, and build capability across the team
- Initiate follow-on research, contribute substantially to grant and associateship applications, and help shape the strategic development and external profile of the EBIC/ICOS programme
- Explore and contribute towards technology translation and exploitation

Essential Knowledge, Skills and Experience (Research Associate and Senior Research Associate):

- Substantial hands-on research experience in synthetic biology, molecular biology, microbial biotechnology, enzyme engineering, biochemistry or a closely related area
- Demonstrable experience of molecular cloning, DNA/RNA manipulation, microbial transformation or genome engineering, cultivation and validation of engineered organisms or constructs
- Experience designing and optimising heterologous protein-expression systems and functionally characterising recombinant enzymes
- Experience applying directed evolution and/or DBTL workflows, including library design, mutagenesis, high-throughput screening and genotype–phenotype interpretation
- Ability to develop robust, reproducible experimental workflows with appropriate controls, traceable records, quantitative analysis and critical troubleshooting
- Experience using generative AI for biotechnology and bioinformatics to inform experimental design, such as protein or nucleotide sequence analysis, motif/active-site assessment, clustering, structure prediction or variant prioritisation
- Practical computational and data-analysis skills sufficient to create transparent, reusable analyses and to work effectively with computational collaborators; familiarity with Python, R or equivalent tools is advantageous
- Evidence of delivering original research to a high standard, normally including peer-reviewed publications and presentation of work at scientific meetings
- Ability to manage priorities and milestones independently while contributing constructively to a multidisciplinary, multi-partner research programme
- Excellent written and oral communication, including the ability to explain complex experimental and computational work to specialists and non-specialists and to write protocols that other laboratories can reproduce
- Ability to undertake laboratory work involving microorganisms, molecular biology and enzyme assays in accordance with institutional risk assessments, training and safety procedures

In addition, essential for Senior Research Associate:

- A sustained record of independent or substantially self-directed research management, with high-quality outputs appropriate to career stage
- Experience coordinating complex work packages or collaborative projects, managing scientific risk and coordinating delivery across disciplines or organisations
- Experience supervising, mentoring or developing researchers and/or students and promoting an inclusive, high-performing research culture
- Evidence of contributing to research funding, partnership development, technology translation, work in or engagement with industrial and other non-academic stakeholders
- An additional record of independent research management, supervision and collaborative delivery commensurate with the senior level of the role

Desirable for both levels:

- Research experience with PETases, polyester hydrolases, plastic biodegradation, biocatalysis or enzymatic polymer recycling
- Experience with microbial strain engineering, cell-free protein expression or rapid prototyping of enzyme variants
- Laboratory automation experience, including robotic liquid handling, Opentrons, acoustic dispensing, assay miniaturisation, microarrays or high-throughput plate workflows
- Experience developing fluorescence- or absorbance-based enzyme assays and/or chromatographic quantification using HPLC, UPLC, LC or GC
- Experience of protein structure analysis, machine learning, protein language models, generative design or other AI-enabled approaches to protein engineering
- Experience analysing metagenomic data or discovering enzymes from environmental sequence datasets
- Experience designing multi-enzyme systems, binding modules, enzyme formulations or process-relevant assays using insoluble substrates
- Experience translating synthetic biology or enzyme technologies towards industrial application, including scalability, robustness, downstream-process compatibility or technology-readiness assessment
- Experience of international research collaboration, responsible innovation, public engagement or contributing to social-media communication of research
- Experience working in a relevant industry or commerce setting with goal-oriented and deadline-constrained environment

Essential Attributes and Behaviour (both levels):

- Independent, resourceful, reliable and able to exercise sound scientific judgement
- Curious and original in approach, with the resilience to diagnose failure modes and iterate constructively
- A collaborative team member who works effectively and respectfully with people from different disciplines, sectors and cultures
- Highly organised and dependable, with the ability to prioritise work, maintain rigorous records and deliver to agreed milestones
- Committed to safe laboratory practice, research integrity, reproducibility, open and responsible research, and an inclusive working environment
- Motivated by the translation of engineering biology into credible environmental and circular-economy solutions

In addition, essential for Senior Research Associate:

- Able to set direction, make proportionate decisions under uncertainty and support others to deliver ambitious interdisciplinary research
- Able to represent the programme confidently with collaborators, funders, industry and wider stakeholders

Essential Qualifications:

- A completed PhD in synthetic biology, molecular biology, microbial biotechnology, enzyme engineering, biochemistry, bioengineering, bioinformatics or a closely related discipline. The doctorate must have been awarded by the time of appointment.

Newcastle University offers a generous holiday package plus the opportunity to buy more, great pension schemes and a number of health and wellbeing initiatives. Newcastle University is a University of Sanctuary committed to being a fully inclusive university. The University holds a Gold Athena Swan award, a Race Equality Charter Bronze award, and is a Disability Confident employer.