Research Associate in Plant Synthetic Biology and Immune Receptor Engineering

Job number
NAT02210

Faculties
Faculty of Natural Sciences

Departments
Department of Life Sciences

Salary or Salary range
£49,017 \- £57,472 per annum

Location/campus
South Kensington Campus \- On site only

Contract type work pattern
Full time \- Fixed term

Posting End Date
2 Jul 2026
About the role
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Do you want to bioengineer plant immune receptors to enhance disease resistance in crops? Join the Kourelis laboratory in the Department of Life Sciences at Imperial College London on a European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grant\-funded project that integrates protein biochemistry, synthetic biology, and bioinformatics.

The Kourelis lab studies fundamental questions in plant–microbe interactions, focusing on the function and evolution of plant immune receptors. The goal of the lab is to use this knowledge to bioengineer disease resistance genes tailored to diverse challenges (Kourelis et al., Science 2023; Marchal et al., Curr. Opin. Plant Biol. 2022\).

What you would be doing
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You will join a multidisciplinary research environment working on the bioengineering of plant immune receptors. You will:

• Engineer plant NLR immune receptors using techniques including Gibson Assembly and Golden Gate cloning.


• Perform high\-throughput functional characterisation of bioengineered immune receptors.


• Use CRISPR genome editing.


• Develop bioinformatics expertise alongside the wet\-lab work. Training in computational methods will be provided.


• Publish first\-author papers and present at international conferences.


• Contribute to lab teaching and supervision of project students.

• A PhD (or equivalent) in plant sciences, molecular biology, biochemistry, or a closely related discipline.


• Experience in molecular biology and biochemistry techniques.


• Willingness to develop bioinformatics expertise alongside the wet\-lab work.


• Excellent written and verbal communication.


• The ability to work both independently and as part of a team. You will be expected to provide training and assistance to more junior researchers.


• Knowledge of plant immunity, NLR biology, or effector biology is desirable, not essential.

• Comprehensive training in synthetic biology, biochemistry, plant–pathogen interactions, and bioinformatics, preparing you for a future career in academia or industry.


• Access to state\-of\-the\-art facilities and a network of international collaborators.


• The opportunity to continue your career at a world\-leading institution and be part of our mission to continue science for humanity.


• Grow your career: gain access to Imperial’s sector\-leading dedicated career support for researchers as well as opportunities for promotion and progression.


• Sector\-leading salary and remuneration package (including 41 days off a year and generous pension schemes).


• Be part of a diverse, inclusive and collaborative work culture with various staff networks and resources to support your personal and professional wellbeing.

This is a full\-time, fixed\-term position for up to 3 years. The anticipated start date is 01 August 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter.

Candidates who have not yet been officially awarded their PhD will be appointed as Research Assistant.

Interested candidates are encouraged to contact Dr Jiorgos Kourelis directly (j.kourelis@imperial.ac.uk) to discuss the project and the lab before applying. Further information on Dr Kourelis and his publications is available at https://profiles.imperial.ac.uk/j.kourelis.

Available documents
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Attached documents are available under links. Clicking a document link will initialize its download.

Please note that job descriptions are not exhaustive, and you may be asked to take on additional duties that align with the key responsibilities mentioned above.

We reserve the right to close the advert prior to the closing date stated should we receive a high volume of applications. It is therefore advisable that you submit your application as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

If you encounter any technical issues while applying online, please don't hesitate to email us at support.jobs@imperial.ac.uk. We're here to help.

About Imperial

Welcome to Imperial, a global top ten university where scientific imagination leads to world\-changing impact.

Join us and be part of something bigger. From global health to climate change, AI to business leadership, here at Imperial we navigate some of the world’s toughest challenges. Whatever your role, your contribution will have a lasting impact.

As a member of our vibrant community of 22,000 students and 8,000 staff, you’ll collaborate with passionate minds across nine London campuses and a global network.

This is your chance to help shape the future. We hope you’ll join us at Imperial College London.

Our Culture

We work towards equality of opportunity, to eliminating discrimination, and to creating an inclusive working environment for all. We encourage applications from all backgrounds, communities and industries, and are committed to employing a team that has diverse skills, experiences and abilities. You can read more about our commitment on our webpages.

Our values are at the root of everything we do and everyone in our community is expected to demonstrate respect, collaboration, excellence, integrity, and innovation.

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