Research and Innovation Associate

KINGS COLLEGE LONDON; United Kingdom; On-site; GBP 45,000 - 53,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading UK academic institution is seeking a Postdoctoral Researcher to work on a funded project exploring congenital anomalies at the Centre for Craniofacial and Regenerative Biology. The ideal candidate will have a PhD in biomedical sciences and experience in molecular biology, embryology, and advanced imaging techniques. This full-time role is based at Guy’s Hospital Campus in London and offers a salary range of £45,031 - £52,514 per annum, including London Weighting Allowance.

Benefits

Professional development days

Career development opportunities

Responsibilities

• Maintain mouse lines and tissue culture lines.
• Molecular biology techniques for gene variant modeling.
• Work collaboratively with research teams.

Skills

Biomedical sciences PhD level experience

Excellent written and verbal communication

Embryology and developmental biology knowledge

Molecular biology techniques

Live microscopy experience

Experimental planning and record keeping

Ability to work in a multidisciplinary team

Mouse genetics experience

Tissue culture experience

Genetic engineering approaches

Interest in educational and outreach activities

Education

PhD in biomedical sciences

Job description

Organisation/Company KINGS COLLEGE LONDON Research Field Medical sciences Chemistry Engineering Researcher Profile Recognised Researcher (R2) Established Researcher (R3) Country United Kingdom Application Deadline 24 Aug 2025 - 00:00 (UTC) Type of Contract Other Job Status Full-time Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

About us

The postholder will work on a 3-year MRC funded project based in the Liu Lab in the Centre for Craniofacial and Regenerative Biology (CCRB) at King’s College London, in collaboration with the Trizzino lab based at Imperial College London.

The postholder will work closely with Prof Karen Liu and Dr Marco Trizzino and with techs, postdocs and PhD students within the Liu and Trizzino labs. Key desired skills include experience with human and animal models, tissue culture, expression analysis, molecular biology, advanced imaging of cell migration.

Postholder will be responsible for maintaining mouse lines and mouse tissue culture lines and will also have access to human stem cell approaches. Techniques may include genotyping, immunohistochemistry, biochemistry, light and confocal microscopy imaging. Engagement with research aims may lead to co-authorship. Additional training and career development opportunities will be strongly encouraged.

The primary employment site will be at the Guy’s Hospital Campus, London, in the Centre for Craniofacial and Regenerative Biology (CCRB). Work in CCRB focuses on mechanisms that control head development and repair, underpinning a broad understanding of the genetic basis of congenital malformations and disease. Research in CCRB is multidisciplinary using different experimental models and techniques to explore cell signalling, transcriptional networks and cell behaviour during development and disease. The department has over 60 research staff with major funding from the Medical Research Council, Biotechnology and Biomedical Science Research Council, ARC, Wellcome Trust and European Commission. Groups occupy newly refurbished laboratories with core facilities on floor 27 of Guy’s Tower Wing, Guy’s Hospital.

About the role

The postdoc will work on modelling congenital CHD3 anomalies using mouse and human models within the Liu Lab in the Centre for Craniofacial and Regenerative Biology at King’s College London and within the Trizzino lab at Imperial College London. Overall aim of the project is to understand the significance of clinically relevant gene variants in CHD3, which causes Snijders-Blok-Campeau Syndrome, and to test the hypothesis that CHD3 specifically regulates development, migration and specification of the neural crest lineage (Mitchell et al., EMBO Reports, 2025).

The postdoc will work closely with Prof Karen Liu, techs, postdocs and PhD students within the Liu lab, with regular interactions and shared meetings with the Trizzino lab. Key desired skills include embryology, tissue culture, biochemistry, gene editing, molecular biology, advanced imaging and database management.

Postdoc will be responsible for establishing and maintaining cell lines and assessing cellular phenotypes. Techniques may include microdissection, molecular biology, biochemistry, immunohistochemistry, light and confocal microscopy imaging. Engagement with research aims may lead to co-authorship. Additional training and career development opportunities for postdocs will be strongly encouraged.

The primary employment site will be at the Guy’s Hospital Campus, London, in the Centre for Craniofacial and Regenerative Biology (CCRB). Work in CCRB focuses on mechanisms that control head development and repair, underpinning a broad understanding of the genetic basis of congenital malformations and disease. Research in CCRB is multidisciplinary using different experimental models and techniques to explore cell signalling, transcriptional networks and cell behaviour during development and disease. The department has over 60 research staff with major funding from the Medical Research Council, Biotechnology and Biomedical Science Research Council, ARC, Wellcome Trust and European Commission. Groups occupy newly refurbished laboratories with core facilities on floor 27 of Guy’s Tower Wing, Guy’s Hospital.

This is a full time post (35 hours per week), and you will be offered an a fixed term contract until 30/09/2028

Research staff at King’s are entitled to at least 10 days per year (pro-rata) for professional development. This entitlement, from the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers, applies to Postdocs, Research Assistants, Research and Teaching Technicians, Teaching Fellows and AEP equivalent up to and including grade 7. Visit the Centre for Research Staff Development for more information.

About you

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

• PhD level experience in a biomedical sciences subject
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Excellent embryology and developmental biology knowledge
• Experience with molecular biology and biochemistry techniques
• Experience with live microscopy
• Excellent record keeping and experimental planning
• Ability to work in a multidisciplinary team
• Experience with mouse genetics
• Experience with tissue culture
• Experience with genetic engineering approaches
• Interest in engaging with educational and outreach activities

Downloading a copy of our Job Description

Full details of the role and the skills, knowledge and experience required can be found in the Job Description document, provided at the bottom of the page. This document will provide information of what criteria will be assessed at each stage of the recruitment process.

Please note that this is a PhD level role but candidates who have submitted their thesis and are awaiting award of their PhDs will be considered. In these circumstances the appointment will be made at Grade 5, spine point 30 with the title of Research Assistant. Upon confirmation of the award of the PhD, the job title will become Research Associate and the salary will increase to Grade 6.

Further information

We pride ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming. We embrace diversity and want everyone to feel that they belong and are connected to others in our community.

We are committed to working with our staff and unions on these and other issues, to continue to support our people and to develop a diverse and inclusive culture at King's.

As part of this commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion and through this appointment process, it is our aim to develop candidate pools that include applicants from all backgrounds and communities.

We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the advert. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.

To find out how our managers will review your application, please take a look at our ‘How we Recruit ’ pages.

Interviews are due to be held on Late August/early September

Grade and Salary:£45,031 - £52,514 per annum including London Weighting Allowance

Job ID:121846

Close Date:24-Aug-2025

Contact Person:Karen Liu

Contact Details:[e-mail]