Postdoctoral Fellow - Biocatalysis in Drug Discovery

About our 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 deliver exciting projects in an encouraging, engaging, and innovative environment. You'll work with multidisciplinary scientific teams from a diverse set of backgrounds and a world-class academic mentor specifically aligned to your project. Our postdocs are respected as specialists, encouraged to speak up, and supported to share their research at conferences, publish papers, achieve their goals.

Make a more meaningful impact in your career, with greater ownership and accountability to contribute whilst making a difference to the lives of our patients!

This is a 3-year programme, with an initial 2-year period and a 1-year merit-based extension.



About the Opportunity

The primary objective of this position is to offer an emerging researcher an exceptional opportunity for advancing the expertise and proficiencies where biocatalysis is used to modify small molecule drug properties. Postdoctoral fellows assume a pivotal role in propelling scientific understanding and catalysing innovation within the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors.

The candidate selected for the postdoc role will become an integral part of AZ's Compound Synthesis and Management Department, within Discovery Sciences (DS), which collaborates closely with the Pharmaceutical Sciences and the CVRM and RIA Therapy areas, all part of BioPharma R&D. You will work together with experts in small molecule organic synthesis, automation, analytical chemistry and protein engineering and take part in a fantastic collaborative research environment which accommodates graduates, PhD candidates, visiting scholars, fellow Postdocs, and staff scientists.



Project Focus

This project will conduct pioneering research in the discovery of biologically active small molecule hits and lead compounds using biocatalysis with methyltransferases and related enzymes. We aim to develop robust routes so the small-scale synthesis of alkylated compounds for probing both SAR and drug-like properties.

Our Postdoctoral fellow will form a collaborative nexus with accomplished interdisciplinary scientists from AstraZeneca, led by Prof. Martin Hayes (Discovery Sciences) an expert in biocatalysis, Dr Giulia Bergonzini (Director, Synthetic Chemistry). In addition, you will receive academic mentorship from Bernhard Hauer (Professor, University of Mainz) and Uwe Bornscheuer (Professor, University of Greifswald).



What You'll Do

As a postdoctoral fellow you will pioneer and lead research aimed at advancing ground-breaking biocatalytic chemistry using methyl(alkyl) transferases for the late stage modification of early stage hit/ lead small molecules.

You will take part in collaborative efforts with other departments in AstraZeneca and with external technology providers to prosecute the development of these biocatalysts as credible catalysts for use in industry.



Key Duties & Responsibilities:

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Devise strategies for the implementation of innovative reactions with C- and N-methyltransferases for the selective modification of C-H bonds in small molecule libraries
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Use automation, miniaturisation and data analytics to build workflows and understanding for how enzyme library vs substrate library screening will be efficiently performed
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Plan, draft and publish impactful paper in high impact scientific journals and skilfully present research findings internally and at external conferences
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Opportunities to mentor PhD students, graduate scientists, and master thesis students



Qualification, Skills & Experience

The AZ Postdoc programme is aimed at individuals who are either:

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Not more than 5-years after completing their doctoral degree (PhD, DVM, or MD) - PhD already awarded, or
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Postgradute Students, about to obtain doctoral degrees (the PhD must be awarded within 6 months of joining AstraZeneca)



Essential Requirements

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A PhD, or equivalent in biocatalysis, enzyme engineering, organic chemistry or a related field
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Passionate about science - Your ability to conduct independent and innovative research is vital
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Established track record of research productivity, substantiated by proven publication record and/or presentations
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Experience in designing and executing experiments, as well as strong analytical and problem-solving skills
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Excellent written and verbal communication skills
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Exceptional collaborator - Working effectively in a team, exchanging ideas, and contributing to joint research efforts



Desirable Requirements

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Proficiency in synthetic organic chemistry and protein engineering
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Experience with analytical tools esp. HT-LCMS, NMR
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Interest in data and workflows, and application of ML to biocatalysis
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Experience of modelling, docking, MD tools as applied to biocatalysis



If your passion is science and you want to be part of a team that makes a bigger impact on patients' lives, then there's no better place to be.

The advert will be open from September 10, 2024 and, we welcome your application as soon as possible, but ahead of the scheduled closing date of October 1, 2024. In the event, that we identify suitable candidates ahead of the scheduled closing date, we reserve the right to withdraw the vacancy earlier than published.