Lead Scientist, Plant Cell Screening & Photosynthesis

1000scholars; Oxford; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 95,000; Full time

Job summary

EIT - Ellison Institute of Technology in Oxford seeks a Scientist or Senior Scientist to lead development of a plant cell-based screening platform for evaluating carbon fixation and related plant physiology. You will drive engineering of photosynthesis pathways and assess enzyme variants for whole-plant validation, advancing IP opportunities and cross‑functional collaboration.

As a senior member of the Plant Biology Institute, you will design rigorous experiments, mentor researchers, and

Qualifications

• PhD in Plant Biology, Physiology, Photosynthesis, Synthetic Biology, Metabolic Engineering or related field.
• Experience applying cell-based methods to measure carbon fixation and photosynthesis.
• Proven track record in plant metabolic or enzyme engineering and screening libraries.
• Experience with transient and stable plant cell genetic engineering (CRISPR, knockouts, insertions).

Responsibilities

• Lead development of a plant cell–based screening platform for carbon fixation and related responses.
• Develop quantitative methods to measure carbon fixation in plant cell suspensions.
• Advance enzyme variants and engineered pathways into whole plants for validation.
• Design, execute and interpret experiments with robust, reproducible results.
• Present findings at internal seminars and external meetings; mentor team members.

Skills

Plant biology expertise

Cell-based screening

CRISPR-based genome editing

Metabolic engineering

Data analysis & interpretation

Education

PhD in Plant Biology or related discipline

Tools

Bioreactor platforms

Chlorophyll fluorescence measurements equipment

Gas-exchange analysis tools

Job description

EIT - Ellison Institute of Technology in Oxford seeks a Scientist or Senior Scientist to lead development of a plant cell-based screening platform for evaluating carbon fixation and related plant physiology. You will drive engineering of photosynthesis pathways and assess enzyme variants for whole-plant validation, advancing IP opportunities and cross‑functional collaboration.

As a senior member of the Plant Biology Institute, you will design rigorous experiments, mentor researchers, and