Lead Scientist, Plant Cell Screening & Photosynthesis

Ellison Institute of Technology; Oxford; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Salary dependent on experience +travel

Bonus

Enhanced holiday

Pension - employer contribution

Life Assurance

Private Medical Insurance

Employee discounts

Electric car scheme

Nursery Salary Sacrifice

Cycle to Work

Neurodiversity support

Coaching & Therapy

Job summary

The Ellison Institute of Technology in Oxford seeks a Scientist or Senior Scientist in Plant Cell Screening and Photosynthesis Engineering to lead the development of a plant cell–based platform for carbon fixation assessment.

You will drive enzyme variant engineering and metabolic pathway optimization, with progression to whole plants for high-performance crops, and contribute to IP and commercial translation.

Qualifications

• PhD in Plant Biology, Plant Physiology, Photosynthesis, Synthetic Biology, Metabolic Engineering, Molecular Biology, Biochemistry or a related discipline.
• Demonstrated experience in cell-based methods to measure carbon fixation, photosynthetic activity and metabolic performance.

Responsibilities

• Lead the development of a plant cell–based screening platform to assess carbon fixation and other physiological responses in suspension cultures.
• Develop and apply quantitative methods to measure carbon fixation rates in plant cell suspensions.
• Identify improved variants of photosynthesis enzymes using the screening platform.
• Assess engineered metabolic pathways designed to enhance photosynthesis.
• Lead genetic engineering in plant cell cultures, including CRISPR genome editing.
• Apply iterative design–build–test–learn cycles to refine engineering strategies.
• Advance promising enzyme variants and pathway designs into whole plants for functional validation.
• Deliver robust, reproducible scientific outcomes and stage-gated milestones.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams and present work at internal and external seminars.
• Assist in mentoring team members and translating results into commercial opportunities.

Skills

Carbon fixation

Photosynthesis engineering

Plant metabolic engineering

Enzyme variant libraries

CRISPR genome editing

Education

PhD in Plant Biology or related

Tools

Plant cell cultures

Bioreactor platforms

Gas-exchange analysis

Chlorophyll fluorescence

Molecular biology techniques

Job description

The Ellison Institute of Technology in Oxford seeks a Scientist or Senior Scientist in Plant Cell Screening and Photosynthesis Engineering to lead the development of a plant cell–based platform for carbon fixation assessment.

You will drive enzyme variant engineering and metabolic pathway optimization, with progression to whole plants for high-performance crops, and contribute to IP and commercial translation.