Full time: 35 hours a week

A specific term: 18 months

Opportunity:

We are looking for a post -PhD research assistant to lead a project on the biological extrapolation of polyester diseases derived from waste to highly valuable chemicals. The target molecule contains various applications through the food, flavor, pharmaceutical industries and chemical industries. The project headquarters will be at the laboratory of Dr. Joanna Sadler at the Institute of Quantitative Biology, Biochemistry and Biotechnology (IQB3).

Plastic waste after the consumer appears as promising intermediate materials for the vital circular economy. We and others are designed De Novo Biomedic synthesis paths in microbial hosts to convert small polyester molecules such as turifthine acid and 3 hydroxy with a lot of valuable chemical products such as vanilla, katikol and an ascone, which are currently manufactured directly from fossil fuels on the industrial scale (Green chemistry. , 202123, 4665-4672; ACS sustainable chemical. Engineer. 202412, 7748-7756). This approach carries tremendous potential to improve the sustainability of plastic and chemicals industries, however the scope of chemicals that can be accessed by biological paths alone is limited by the available biological incentives. This project aims to address this by developing new and developed enzymatic paths to high -value chemical products through metabolic engineering.

This project is part of the UK’s engineering biology, Vital circular economy through the engineering biology network for specialized chemicalsand (Circbionet). Circbionet aims to create a global -level engineering biology federation to stimulate the transition of specialized chemicals industry to biological sustainable processes that are included in the circular economy according to design. Take advantage of the unique experience from all parts of the team, and this will be enabled by integrating specialized biological chemical production while evaluating plastic at the end of life using the vital technological “Upcycling” approach, leading by network members. This role in the project will focus on the engineering microbial strains to convert polyster waste into fatty acids that will be used for the vital creation of the targeted molecules.

As a member of Circbionet, you will get access to training and cooperation from all over the international network (UK and Singapore), including opportunities to visit collaborators, and participate in multidisciplinary research and innovation, in regular online project meetings.

Your skills and characteristics for success:

• Doctorate in appropriate discipline (such as biological sciences, biotechnology, biological stimulation, microbial biotechnology, biochemistry or chemical biology)
• Engineering experience Cola To produce a small molecule, it is preferable with experience in the vital synthesis of fatty acids
• Biochemistry experience and/or organic, including common analytical techniques such as GC/LC-MS, HPLC and NMR.
• The experience of developing, analyzing and improving new vital processes
• Hamas to work in a multidisciplinary team in the interface of chemistry and biology