Senior Research Associate (Bacterial DNA Replication)

Starting salary: £46,485 per annum

Newcastle University is a great place to work, with excellent benefits. We have a generous holiday package; plus the opportunity to buy more, great pension schemes and a number of health and wellbeing initiatives to support you.

Closing Date: 06 November 2024

The Role

A Senior Research Associate is required to support laboratory of Professor Heath Murray, focusing on understanding the mechanism of DNA replication initiation in bacteria (https://www.ncl.ac.uk/cbcb/staff/profile/heathmurray.html#background). This Wellcome Trust funded position is based at the Centre for Bacterial Cell Biology (CBCB) within the Biosciences Institute at Newcastle University.

Bacteria are the most abundant species on Earth, playing central roles in human health and in the environment. A molecular understanding of bacterial cell cycle activities is necessary to control their growth and proliferation. Despite years of study, fundamental aspects of DNA replication initiation in bacteria remain poorly understood. Specifically, the architecture of nucleoprotein complexes required to load helicase(s), and the temporal set of activities that replication initiation proteins perform during the helicase loading reactions, are unclear.

This post will involve laboratory-based research, mainly focused on purification of DNA replication proteins and reconstitution of their activities in vitro. This project will combine genetics, biochemistry, and cryo-electron microscopy to unravel the molecular mechanisms of bacterial helicase loading, to near-atomic resolution, at both a chromosome origin and a repaired replication fork.

This is a full-time fixed term post to 31/12/2030.

For informal enquiries please contact: Professor Heath Murray heath.murray@newcastle.ac.uk

As part of our commitment to career development for research colleagues, the University has developed 3 levels of research role profiles.  These profiles set out firstly the generic competences and responsibilities expected of role holders at each level and secondly the general qualifications and experiences needed for entry at a particular level.

Please note that if you are successful to this role, you will require medical clearance before you can commence in the role.

Key Accountabilities

• Plan and lead high quality research, project managing the research activity, supervising and taking responsibility for the research team, and collaborating with external collaborators
• Carry out research within agreed timelines, meeting project milestones and to an appropriate standard
• Monitor workload and supervise/train less experienced staff and/or students working across several projects
• Publish multiple independent research findings in prominent peer reviewed journals over a substantial period of time
• Present research findings at conferences nationally and internationally
• Help colleagues in interpreting their data, to manage competing priorities, and to develop their research skills
• Supervise undergraduate research students and take responsibility for their training
• Supervise postgraduate research students and take responsibility for their training
• Actively seek out and develop opportunities for interdisciplinary research
• Identify and undertake a programme of professional development, including further training in research methods and other transferable skills
• Maintain academic standards and freedom, and work in accordance with university policies

The Person 

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• Substantial experience of designing and delivering research projects
• Substantial experience of analysing and interpreting data
• Substantial evidence of implementing and optimising laboratory methods
• Experience of supervising and training staff
• Experience of supervising and students
• Experience of preparing research proposals for submission to competitive funding organisations
• Ability to work independently and as part interdisciplinary research project teams
• Ability to communicate complex information with clarity and to encourage the commitment of others
• High level of analytical and problem-solving capability
• Experience of research with clear transferable skills and some experience or awareness of the research environment
• Detailed subject knowledge in bacterial DNA replication
  • DnaA
  • PriA
  • Helicase
• Detailed subject knowledge in bacterial homologous recombination
  • RecA
• Strong understanding of protein:nucleic acid interactions
• Protein and nucleic acid purification
  • Experience with removal of epitope tags
  • IMAC
  • SEC
  • Ion exchange
• Biochemical characterization of nucleoprotein complexes in vitro
• General molecular biology
• General bacteriology
• Established scientific writing skills
• Bacillus subtilis genetics
  • Transformation
  • Plasmid extraction
  • Temperature sensitive mutants

• Significant experience in genetic engineering
  • Gibson assembly
  • Site-directed mutagenesis
  • Golden Gate cloning
  • Ligation-free cloning
• Bacterial two-hybrid analysis
• Chromatin immunoprecipitation
  • Antibody purification
  • qPCR
• Protein:DNA interactions
  • EMSA
  • SPR
  • MST
  • Fluorescence anisotropy
  • Chemical crosslinking
• Southern blotting

• Ability to prioritise key tasks and carry out research project work within agreed timelines, meeting project milestones and producing research to an appropriate standard
• Ability to present findings at national and international conferences

Attributes and Behaviour

• Excellent organisational, communication, and interpersonal skills
• Ability to work flexibly and cooperatively with others
• Capacity for original thought
• Willingness to work flexibly by mutual arrangement
• Clear commitment to a career in research
• Applicants should be ambitious with a demonstrable drive to succeed and produce work at the highest level

Qualifications

• PhD in a relevant biosciences subject
• Undergraduate degree in a relevant biosciences subject

Newcastle University is a global University where everyone is treated with dignity and respect.  As a University of Sanctuary, we aim to provide a welcoming place of safety for all, offering opportunities to people fleeing violence and persecution.

We are committed to being a fully inclusive university which actively recruits, supports and retains colleagues from all sectors of society.  We value diversity as well as celebrate, support and thrive on the contributions of all of our employees and the communities they represent.  We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing teams, we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and experiences reflect the diversity of our university and student population.

At Newcastle University we hold a silver Athena Swan award in recognition of our good employment practices for the advancement of gender equality.  We also hold a Race Equality Charter Bronze award in recognition of our work towards tackling race inequality in higher education REC.  We are a Disability Confident employer and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role as part of the offer and interview scheme.

In addition, we are a member of the Euraxess initiative supporting researchers in Europe. 

Requisition ID: 27718