Enzymology and Protein Engineering Director – Biotech – Research – Ref.: CH250221VS

Filled Positions
  • Date posted: 12th March 2021
Job Description

Our UK based client is an exciting new startup with the potential to have a major impact on personalised medicine. They are developing a breakthrough technology from Oxford University that makes epigenetic analysis of DNA methylation more accurate, easier and cheaper than ever before. They expect their platform to become central to a host of major new healthcare and research applications including early cancer detection from liquid biopsies. They are working on the diagnostic application of their technology with the aim of reducing the incidence of advanced stage cancer by 75% in the next 5-10 years through early, affordable and precise detection. Ultimately this will improve cure rates and quality of life for patients with cancer and reduce the economic burden of cancer to healthcare systems across the world.

They require a flexible, creative and rigorous scientific leader with a track record of delivering major projects in the protein engineering and enzymology space, to help them further improve and commercialise their powerful technology. Working in a fast-paced environment with a highly skilled interdisciplinary team, the role holder will lead and grow a team that is focused on creating, optimising and characterising enzymes, developing & implementing processes and tools to enable their manufacturing and identifying or engineering new enzymes or enzyme mutants with improved properties. The successful delivery of these projects will be critical for the delivery of highly impactful products that will transform cancer care.

Candidates to have a PhD in Biochemistry, Molecular Biology or similar discipline, 10+ years post-PhD experience in protein engineering, expression & purification or enzymology with 7+ years industry experience together with a proven track record of leadership and execution of efforts to identify and create new enzymatic activities and prototype processes required to manufacture and QC them. Ideally, they will possess a strong record of commercialising RUO or IVD products that incorporate enzymes.