Research Associate - Pathogen Dynamics Unit (Fixed Term)
The Pathogen Dynamics Unit, located within the Department of Genetics at the University of Cambridge is looking for one full-time postdoctoral Research Associate to work on projects relating to the emergence, spread and control of dengue virus.
The Pathogen Dynamics Unit at the University of Cambridge consists of 15-20 researchers at different stages of their career using mathematical and computational research to help our understanding of how pathogens spread in populations, assess control efforts and support policy making. We work closely with an established network of collaborators across laboratories, field-based epidemiologists, hospitals and public health agencies.
The position will be based in Cambridge and will be supervised by Professor Henrik Salje in a collaborative project with researchers at the University of Lancaster and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). The project will consist of the analysis of SARS-CoV-2 genomes and contact tracing data collected as part of the COVID-19 response. The project will use phylogenetic and mathematical modelling approaches to understand the structure of UK society, and the implications of how we interact with each other leads to infectious disease spread. The finding from this work will help guide future pandemic preparedness.
The applicant will have strong quantitative skills, including applied to pathogen genomic data. The project will require the development of computationally intensive models and therefore applicants should have experience in coding and a good understanding of probability, likelihoods and Bayesian analysis. We are also seeking individuals with a strong interest in public health.
Key Responsibilities:
- Develop models that integrate different data types (e.g., serology, epidemiological data, genomic data, demography) to understand the dynamics of pathogens.
- Write-up findings in manuscripts
- Work with study partners
- Present findings at conferences, external and internal meetings
- Be an active member of the Pathogen Dynamics Unit, including contributing to wider group discussions
- Supervision of students/Interns working in support of the research group
Fixed-term: The funds for this post are available for 12 months in the first instance.
Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.
For informal enquiries about the role please contact Professor Henrik Salje hs743@cam.ac.uk
Please quote reference PC45972 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.
The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.
The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.
PhD Studentship - MRC Integrative Toxicology Training Partnership (ITTP)
Project Title: Characterising clonal dynamics of somatic mutations in vivo for early prediction of carcinogenicity using advanced error corrected next generation sequencing
Supervisor: Dr Alex Cagan
Department: Department of Genetics, University of Cambridge
Industrial Partner: GSK
Somatic mutations drive cancer and may underlie many chronic diseases - yet current safety testing struggles to detect the earliest signals of carcinogenic risk. This PhD project aims to transform how we evaluate the potential for new drugs and chemicals to cause cancer, by tracking somatic mutations and clonal expansions in rodent tissues using cutting-edge, ultra-accurate error-corrected sequencing (ecNGS).
Working at the interface of evolutionary genomics and toxicology, the student will generate high-resolution maps of mutation burden and cancer driver mutation (CDM) dynamics in response to carcinogenic exposure. By integrating new computational and experimental approaches (e.g. Laser capture microdissection and ecNGS), and accessing samples and expertise through GSK's Investigative Toxicology group, the student will help develop a novel framework for early carcinogenicity prediction. This project offers the rare opportunity to translate high-resolution molecular data into practical tools for non-clinical drug safety and regulatory science. This has the potential to revolutionise our ability to detect and understand the carcinogenic impact of chemical compounds.
Based in the Department of Genetics at the University of Cambridge and co-supervised by GSK, the student will receive hands-on training in ecNGS library prep, experimental toxicology, and bioinformatics. The student will also gain experience in working with industry partners, contributing to translational research in regulatory genomics and drug development.
The MRC Integrative Toxicology Training Partnership (ITTP) is a national PhD training programme for capacity building in Toxicology and related disciplines.
The safe development of new drugs, materials, chemicals and consumer products along with the assessment of risk from environmental exposure requires the integration of cutting-edge science with traditional toxicology. The ITTP provides a training platform to enable this and aims to bring together academia, industry and government agencies to provide the required expertise.
ITTP students attend a once yearly residential toxicology training course, have access to the MRC Toxicology Unit's Masterclass seminar series and attend toxicology and laboratory training in their host institutions.
We are looking for a motivated student with a strong background in genomics, molecular biology, or bioinformatics. This interdisciplinary project would suit someone interested in cancer biology, somatic evolution, toxicology, or the development of predictive models of disease. The ideal candidate will have strong analytical and collaborative skills, with the ability to work independently in a supportive research environment.
Full funding is provided for 4 years for UK home-fee eligible students, including: - UKRI stipend (£20,780 per annum for 2025/26) - University fees - £5,000 per year for consumables - £25 per year for society membership
To apply please visit: https://www.postgraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/courses/ and click 'Apply Now' selecting the following course:
- PhD in Genetics(Full-time)
- Start Date: 1st October 2025
- Project Supervisor: Dr Alex Cagan
- Project Title: Include title as listed above
- Research Proposal: Include project details as listed above
Applications should include: - Two academic references - Transcript - CV/resume - Evidence of competence in English (If required - you can check using our tool) - Statement of Interest outlining your suitability, why you are interested in a PhD in this area, your background and research interests. - School of Biological Sciences - Widening Participation Questionnaire (applicants are asked to complete an additional form to provide contextual information about their previous study. Find out more about our use of contextual information here: https://www.postgraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/applying/contextual-data
Completed applications (with ALL supporting documentation and references) to be submitted via the portal by 23:59pm (midnight) UK time on the 6th June 2025 at the latest. Interviews will be scheduled for the 18th June.
For queries related to this PhD studentship, please contact Dr Alex Cagan email atjc2@cam.ac.uk.
Please quote reference PC45937 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.
The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.
The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.
Laboratory Technician
The Department of Genetics Fly Facility is looking to recruit an enthusiastic and highly organised Laboratory Technician to run its Drosophila (fruit fly) food service. The service provides food to most of the Drosophila research groups in Cambridge, as well as to the Fly Facility's stock-keeping service. The Laboratory Technician role is vital, as the university's world-class Drosophila research ultimately relies upon the availability of fresh, high-quality fly food.
Central to the role is ensuring that research groups receive their fly food orders in a timely fashion, and that the food is of a consistently high quality. To achieve this, the technician must make daily decisions about the quantity and type of food to cook and oversee the distribution of prepared food to the groups. They need to monitor food quality and to communicate with service users about food production.
The technician is responsible for supervising other Fly Facility staff who assist with fly food production and with the organisation and maintenance of the fly kitchen. They are required to keep these staff aware of food preparation schedules, changes in lab procedures, and safety compliance.
Since there is a constant demand for fly food, it is important that the facility does not run short of ingredients and other supplies. The technician is responsible for monitoring supply levels, predicting future requirements and overseeing the reordering process.
The technician also contributes to the Fly Facility's stock keeping service. The service maintains living fly stock collections for research groups in Cambridge and beyond. This is a significant responsibility as many of the fly stocks are difficult to replace or even unique. The technician is part of a Fly Facility team that is collectively responsible for delivering the facility's services and provides a supportive working environment.
Please note, a valid driving license is desirable for this role to assist with the delivery of fly stocks to local laboratories using a delivery van.
Once an offer of employment has been accepted, the successful candidate will be required to undergo a health assessment.
Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.
Informal enquiries are welcomed and should be directed to Dr Simon Collier psc38@cam.ac.uk
Please quote reference PC45898 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.
The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.
The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.
Research Associate in Developmental Systems Biology (Fixed Term)
Applications are invited for a Postdoctoral Research Associate position in the group of Dr Erik Clark at the Department of Genetics in central Cambridge. We are looking for a talented and enthusiastic individual to join a small interdisciplinary team investigating the robust anteroposterior patterning of the early Drosophila embryo. The role will involve collecting quantitative imaging data to inform gene regulatory network models, then computationally simulating these models to explore their dynamics.
The position will involve a combination of wet-lab experiments and mathematical modelling. It would best suit an individual with an interdisciplinary background in developmental and computational biology, or a theorist who has picked up some wet-lab skills. A friendly, collaborative attitude, an ability to both teach and learn from others, and good organisational and communication skills are essential.
Experimental techniques will include Drosophila genetics, fixed embryo staining (multiplexed HCR and immunofluorescence), high-end confocal microscopy, and computational image analysis, with the potential to extend these methods to other dipteran species. Training in these techniques is available within the lab, although an existing familiarity with wet-lab developmental biology is highly desirable.
The computational modelling work will be independently driven by the candidate, with input from the PI and an external theory collaborator. Previous experience with modelling biological systems and scientific programming is essential. A background in dynamical systems is desirable.
The context of the project is the evolution of anteroposterior patterning networks across insects. Strong interests in gene regulatory networks, patterning mechanisms, insects, and evo-devo are essential.
The role will also include contributing generally to the research group by regularly presenting and discussing research, helping to train and supervise students, and working towards scientific publications.
Suitable applicants should hold a PhD in a relevant scientific discipline and display a good working knowledge of relevant techniques and an enthusiasm for the subject area. The position is fixed term for a period of 3 years in the first instance and is available from 1st October 2025.
Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.
Informal enquiries about the role should be directed to Dr Erik Clark (ec491@cam.ac.uk)
Please quote reference PC45880 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.
The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.
The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.
Research Assistant/Associate (Fixed Term)
Applications are invited for a Research Assistant/Associate position to work in the groups of Dr Felipe Karam Teixeira and Professor Richard Durbin at the Department of Genetics in central Cambridge.
The successful candidate will work on a Wellcome Trust-funded project that brings together the Karam Teixeira and Durbin groups to focus on dissecting how transposable elements shape the evolution of eukaryotic genomes. Dr Karam Teixeira's group uses Drosophila as a model to study transposable element biology, epigenetic regulation and inheritance, small RNA-based defence mechanisms, and germline biology in animals, while Prof Durbin's works on computational genomics and large scale genome science, including the development of new algorithms and statistical methods to study genome evolution. Moving forward, the labs are jointly building an interdisciplinary research team, which will combine large-scale experimental evolution studies and innovative computational methods, with the goal to uncover the breadth of transposon-derived variation and its role in functional genetic variation and genome evolution in animals.
A PhD in a biological science or computational science is essential for this role. Those who have submitted but not yet received their PhD will be appointed at Research Assistant level, updated to Postdoctoral Research Associate level once their PhD has been awarded. The salary range for Research Assistants is £32,546 - £35,116 and for Research Associates this is £37,174 - £45,413 per annum.
Suitable candidates should have previous experience of genetic analysis of large scale genome sequence data and transposable element biology. They should be able to develop and apply at scale bioinformatic tools that identify and classify transposable elements, and the variation they create. Solid experience in programming with Bash and Python is also required and previous experience of vertebrate and invertebrate genomes would be beneficial.
The ideal candidate will be an independent researcher capable of managing a variety of raw and processed genomic data (including DNA-seq, RNA-seq, small RNA-seq, Hi-C, as well as long-read sequencing - RNA and DNA - data), and work productively with wet and dry researchers in an interdisciplinary research environment.
Further information about Dr Felipe Karam Teixeira's research group can be found here https://www.gen.cam.ac.uk/research-groups/research-groups/karam-teixeira
Further information about Professor Richard Durbin's research group can be found here https://www.gen.cam.ac.uk/research-groups/research-groups/durbin
Fixed Term: The funding for this position is available for 3 years in the first instance.
Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.
For an informal discussion about this role, please contact Dr Felipe Karam Teixeira (fk319@cam.ac.uk) or Professor Richard Durbin (rd109@cam.ac.uk)
Please quote reference PC45860 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.
The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.
The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.
Research Associate (Fixed Term)
We invite applications for a Postdoctoral Research Associate to join the research group of Dr. Antoine Hocher in the Department of Genetics, based in central Cambridge. Our lab explores molecular mimicry and chromatin evolution. We combine molecular biology, phylogenetics, proteomics and genetics.
This postdoctoral position focuses on studying and engineering proteins that mimic DNA. Molecular mimicry is a powerful evolutionary strategy observed across diverse organisms, from insects to vertebrates. While striking examples of phenotypic mimicry are well-documented, systematic approaches to identify and manipulate molecular mimicry remain largely unexplored.
The successful candidate will lead wet-lab projects aimed at:
- Developing high-throughput environmental DNA screens to uncover new cases of molecular mimicry.
- Engineering DNA-mimicking proteins using directed evolution platforms.
- Dissecting the mechanisms of action of newly identified DNA mimics.
By applying cutting-edge approaches, this work aims to systematically uncover DNA mimics and their targets, with potential applications in inhibiting DNA-binding proteins and advancing our understanding of molecular mimicry as a biological phenomenon.
This position provides a unique opportunity to develop expertise in diverse high-throughput techniques (proteomics, transcriptomics, directed evolution). The successful candidate will benefit from the lab's combined expertise in wet-lab molecular biology and computational biology.
Prior experience in microbiology, protein biology or experimental evolution is advantageous. Computational biology expertise is not required. A curious, persevering, and independent mindset is essential.
Fixed-term: The funds for this post are available for 2 years in the first instance.
Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.
For informal enquiries about the role please contact Dr Antoine Hocher ah2368@cam.ac.uk
Please quote reference PC45382 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.
The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.
The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.
IT Technician
The Department of Genetics, University of Cambridge, is a thriving, friendly and dynamic community of staff and students, dedicated to the pursuit of world-class research, teaching and learning, and driven by curiosity, quality, collaboration and innovation. It is a wonderfully rich and rewarding environment in which to grow, both personally and professionally.
We wish to recruit an enthusiastic and self-motivated IT Technician who can assist with the provision of IT support for all teaching, research and administration activities within the department. The role will be split 50/50 between the main Department of Genetics and the Bioinformatics Training Facility (BTF), which sits within the Department of Genetics. This will be a hands-on role providing the first line of support and therefore requires good communication and relationship-building skills.
The role will be well supported by the IT Managers in the department and BTF, by the School of Biological Sciences Head of IT, and by colleagues in similar roles in other university departments. A wide range of training and professional career development opportunities are also available. If you have the technical skills to help with the delivery of a resilient IT service for the department, and the personality and drive to contribute to an outstanding support culture, please do apply - we'll be delighted to hear from you.
This role is based within the Department of Genetics, and full-time, on-site presence is expected.
Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.
Informal enquiries are welcomed and should be directed to Gareth Porteous gsp35@cam.ac.uk and Paul Judge pj237@cam.ac.uk
Please quote reference PC45379 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.
The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.
The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.
Research Associate in Developmental Biology (Fixed Term)
Applications are invited for a Postdoctoral Research Associate position in the group of Dr Erik Clark at the Department of Genetics in central Cambridge. We are looking for a talented and enthusiastic individual to join a small interdisciplinary team investigating the robust patterning of the early Drosophila embryo. The role will involve developing and applying cutting-edge imaging approaches in Drosophila and Tribolium embryos, plus computational analysis of the resulting data.
Your primary responsibility will be to establish and optimise new techniques in the lab, including live imaging of gene expression in Drosophila embryos and multiplexed fixed imaging of gene expression in Tribolium embryos. Significant previous experience with Drosophila and Tribolium husbandry, advanced imaging, and image analysis is essential for the role. Experience with CRISPR/Cas9 would also be helpful.
The context of the project is the evolution of anteroposterior patterning networks across insects. A background in and enthusiasm for insect evolutionary developmental biology is highly desirable for the role.
The role will involve independently leading your own project while teaching and learning from other lab members and external collaborators. A friendly, collaborative attitude and good organisational and communication skills are essential.
Suitable applicants should hold a PhD in a relevant scientific discipline. They should be able to demonstrate a thorough working knowledge of relevant wet-lab, imaging, and computational techniques, and be confident in delivering training in these techniques to other lab members. They should also have experience in presenting research to different audiences, contributing to publications, and helping to lead group discussions.
The position is fixed term for a period of 18 months in the first instance and is available from 1st April 2025.
Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.
Informal enquiries about the role are welcome and should be directed to Dr Erik Clark ec491@cam.ac.uk
Please quote reference PC45080 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.
The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.
The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.
Research/Practical Class Technician (Part Time)
The Department of Genetics is one of 13 departments within the School of Biological Sciences. The main building of the Genetics Department is home to 22 research groups, 117 staff and 30-40 undergraduate students, and comprises laboratories, teaching classrooms, offices and support facilities on 4 floors. The Genetics Department teaches at all levels of undergraduate education and provides input to many undergraduate courses. The successful applicant will be part of the professional support staff team and be responsible for providing technical support for teaching activities across the Department.
We are looking for a proactive and responsible Technician who is confident working with different research groups and leading the organisation and provision of resources for laboratory based practical teaching classes. The ideal applicant will have practical experience of supporting biological research with a high degree of accuracy and be able to demonstrate knowledge of the principles, processes and general concepts related to Laboratory Technician work.
A key element of the role supports staff across the Department by monitoring the stock of consumables, ordering replacements and assisting with the maintenance of laboratory equipment. The role holder will be responsible for purchasing laboratory consumables and minor equipment to an agreed budget by placing orders through the University's financial system (CUFS), checking supplies and specifications with end users, resolving issues with suppliers and requesting quotes.
As this role interacts with academics, research staff and students, strong communication skills are essential with an aptitude for identifying technical support needs and resolving problems quickly. The role holder will also support our Department Safety Officer to ensure that health and safety procedures are observed at all times.
The role is based in the Department of Genetics but requires some movement between other local Departments when setting up practical classes in shared teaching facilities. Therefore, short periods of physically strenuous activity will also be required.
The position is offered on a permanent basis, subject to satisfactory completion of a 6 month probation period. This is a part-time role working 22 hours per week, Monday to Friday.
Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.
For informal enquiries about the role please contact Amie Baker, aew47@cam.ac.uk
Please quote reference PC45063 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.
The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.
The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.
