Postdoctoral Fellow: Regulation of intracellular pH and CHO epigenetics
AstraZeneca

Gaithersburg, Maryland

Posted in Pharmaceuticals


This job has expired.

Job Info


Postdoctoral Fellow: Regulation of intracellular pH and CHO epigenetics

Gaithersburg, Maryland (US)

Competitive Salary, Bonus & Benefits

Would you like to apply your expertise in cell culture and biochemistry to help turn your research into life-changing medicines? Then this position at AstraZeneca is the one for you.

About AstraZeneca:

AstraZeneca is a global, science-led, patient-centred biopharmaceutical company focusing on discovering, developing, and commercialising prescription medicines for some of the world's most serious diseases. But we're more than a global leading pharmaceutical company. At AstraZeneca, we're dedicated to being a Great Place to Work and empowering employees to push the boundaries of science and fuel their entrepreneurial spirit. There's no better place to make a difference in medicine, patients, and society.

About the Postdoc Programme:

Bring your expertise, apply your knowledge, follow the science, and make a difference.

AstraZeneca's Postdoc Programme is for self-motivated individuals looking to tackle exciting, high-impact projects in a collaborative, engaging and innovative environment. You'll work with peers and professionals from a diverse set of backgrounds and a world-class academic mentor specifically aligned to your project. We'll help you develop valuable networks which support your research and future career development!

AstraZeneca Postdocs are respected as specialists and encouraged to speak up. They lead ground-breaking drug discovery and development research projects. Our vibrant, multi-disciplinary scientific teams empower and support our Postdocs. We encourage them to share their research at conferences, publish papers, achieve their goals and make a difference to our patients.

You'll learn from industry leaders working on innovative research across our organization. In addition, our Postdoc Training Programme will support you to develop transferrable skills from influencing others to shaping the agenda to data analysis.

This is a 3-year programme, with an initial 2-year period and 1-year, merit-based extension.

About the Opportunity:

CHO cells are known to exhibit high sensitivity to extracellular pH for biologics production and studies in our lab have shown that intracellular pH correlates to lactate metabolism and cellular productivity in an unconventional manner. To that end, we are seeking a motivated and meticulous Post-Doctoral Fellow to understand the regulation of intracellular pH by evaluating the role of relevant transporters and enzymes in CHO cells. This work will be complemented by the generation of pertinent phenotypic, metabolic, and epigenetic characteristics of the cells. You would test if the intracellular pH determines the epigenetic state of histones and also if the intracellular pH is epigenetically regulated. The Postdoctoral Fellow will be involved in establishing a bidirectional link between intracellular pH and epigenetics and illuminating useful strategies to tweak intracellular pH to optimize culture performance.

This project will involve running lab experiments using CHO cells in shake flasks/bioreactors and running/developing related analytical methods to measure the cytosolic pH, activities of different transporters/enzymes, levels of key metabolites, as well as different epigenetic markers in histones. The candidate would be exposed to a diverse set of analytical techniques including flow cytometry for measuring intracellular pH, Western blots, CHIP-seq analysis, enzyme activity assays, and qRT-PCR. Additionally, some of the experiments would involve the use of isotopically labelled substrates.

You will be encouraged to independently design, coordinate and conduct experiments and will have the opportunity to present all project-relevant data at internal and cross-project team meetings and scientific conferences.

This programme offers a unique opportunity for a dedicated scientist to perform cutting edge research in a dynamic and innovative environment. In addition, you will be supervised by a known AstraZeneca expert in the field with consultation from an academic expert.

Please note that some as-needed weekend work is required for this role.

Qualification, Skills & Experience:

Essential Requirements

  • PhD in Biochemical/Chemical Engineering, Biochemistry, Chemistry, or a related field
  • Proficiency in using cell culture techniques
  • In-depth experience with biochemistry techniques including methods to quantify gene or protein expression
  • Prior experience with measurement of intracellular pH, transporter characterization, epigenetic analysis, or techniques aimed at determining levels/fluxes of target metabolites
  • Detailed written and verbal communication skills and presentation skills
  • Ability to work with cross-collaborative teams
  • Flexibility to work over weekends on a needed basis

Desirable Requirements
  • Experience working with CHO cells
  • Demonstrated understanding of CHO physiology/metabolism
  • Experience running bioreactors
  • Excellent Communication, interpersonal and organizational skills

Ready for an exciting, rewarding challenge? Apply today!

Advert Opens: 31/08/22

Advert Closes: 03/10/22

AstraZeneca embraces diversity and equality of opportunity. We are committed to building an inclusive and diverse team representing all backgrounds, with as wide a range of perspectives as possible, and harnessing industry-leading skills. We believe that the more inclusive we are, the better our work will be. We welcome and consider applications to join our team from all qualified candidates, regardless of their characteristics. We comply with all applicable laws and regulations on non-discrimination in employment (and recruitment), as well as work authorization and employment eligibility verification requirements.

AstraZeneca requires all US employees to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 but will consider requests for reasonable accommodations as required by applicable law.


This job has expired.

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