Postdoc Fellow Biophysical and structural studies

Biophysical and structural studies of Protein-Oligonucleotide Interactions
AstraZeneca is a global, science-led, patient-centered biopharmaceutical company that focuses on the discovery, development and commercialization of prescription medicines for some of the world’s most serious disease. But we’re more than one of the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies. At AstraZeneca, we 're dedicated to being a Great Place to Work where you are empowered to push the boundaries of science and fuel your entrepreneurial spirit. There’s no better place to make a difference to medicine, patients and society.
About the Postdoc Programme
Bring your expertise, apply your knowledge, follow the science and make a difference!
AstraZeneca’s Postdoc Programme is for self-motivated individuals looking to take on exciting, high impact projects in a collaborative and innovative environment.
Working with peers and professionals from a diverse set of backgrounds, together with a world class academic mentor aligned specifically to your project, you’ll be respected as a specialist, and encouraged to speak up. You’ll lead a novel and innovative research project at the interface of drug discovery and biopharmaceutical development in a multi-disciplinary scientific environment.
You’ll be empowered and supported to drive the success of your project, publish papers, achieve your goals and make difference to our patients.
Running alongside your research project, our postdoc training program will help you learn about drug discovery and development from industry leaders working in our cutting edge research laboratories and organization.
About the Opportunity
Working from our vibrant Gothenburg site in Sweden, you will have the critical task of developing biophysical assays to study intracellular proteins and oligonucleotides/RNA interactions (particularly antisense oligos, ASOs). Through biophysical technologies such as SPR, ITC, DSF and SMM, you will significantly impact current oligonucleotide projects since you will provide insights on the correlations between ASOs chemistry and efficacy in biological systems.
As an expert in RNA biophysics, you will utilise your expertise in assay development, propose experimental strategies and troubleshoot challenges to succeed in your role. You will also be involved in protein production and oligonucleotide design in close collaboration with the team and other groups at AstraZeneca. This work will be fundamental to uncover ASOs mechanism of action and provide crucial insights for developing new oligonucleotide-based therapeutics.
You will apply biophysical techniques such as SPR, ITC, DSF and SMM and develop novel assays specific to RNA targets. Actively investigate and propose proteins that could be of interest by affecting the efficacy of oligonucleotides in response to chemical modifications. Based on preliminary studies and your observation, you will design and label new oligonucleotide and RNA probes.
You will join the Mechanistic and Structural Biology team at AstraZeneca with extensive experience in measuring molecular interactions, and work in collaboration with leading external experts in oligonucleotides-based therapeutics. You will be an essential member within a growing and diverse postdocs team, working on oligonucleotides-based therapeutics, thereby creating yourself unique opportunities for collaboration and learning.
This position offers the opportunity to be creative in a field of Oligonucleotide Therapeutics that is nowadays groundbreaking. The wide window of exploration and the active collaboration with multiple experts across AstraZeneca functions will provide an outstanding opportunity to apply biophysical techniques both in vitro and in cells. This strong network of experts will help to ensure a high impact publication track record. Therefore, the programme offers the ability to maintain a driven research output.
Qualification, Skills & Experience
Required:
PhD or postdoc in RNA structure and biophysics
Sophisticated and up to date knowledge in RNA modalities and Biophysical technologies
Experience in RNA biology assays
Passion for exploring innovative ways to bringing big data together in biologically meaningful ways

Desirable:
Knowledge in the area of Oligonucleotide Therapeutics, including design and synthesis
Hands-on experience in Cellular Assays
Scientific excellence as shown by previous work, publication list or references from scientific mentors

This is a 3-year programme. 2 years will be a Fixed Term Contract, with a 1-year extension which will be merit-based.