An exciting opportunity has emerged to join the Molecular Biophysics Group to work on a BBSRC-supported project aimed at answering a fundamental question, Why does Nature use modular enzyme architectures for biological catalysis?

We have identified new classes nitrite reductases (NiRs) where cognate electron-donating partner proteins (cytochromes and azurins) are tethered to the catalytic core domains. These offer unique opportunity to provide new understanding of dynamic protein-protein complexes by defining key elements of protein-protein interactions involved in control, regulation and utilization of substrates. Our approach is to use state-of-the-art structural and biophysical methods to learn about the design concepts of CuNiRs through comparison of the catalytic efficiency between redox centres of naturally fused multi-proteins/domains and encounter complexes formed from freely-diffusing ET partners.

The PDRA will have the overall responsibility for all of the structural part of the project including design and production for synthetic versions of the core catalytic domains of the multi-domain proteins, and also new constructs in which individual domains are removed or the domain sequence is altered. The PDRA will be responsible for producing wild-type proteins and variants as required by the structural work as described in various work packages. The PDRA will undertake crystallisation experiments and will have responsibility for the crystallographic including serial crystallography programme, from data collection, processing, refinement to structure-function interpretation. The PDRA will spend up to 4 weeks at the RIKEN-Harima campus to conduct serial crystallographic experiments at SACLA X-ray laser and micro-focus ambient temperature experiments on RIKEN beamline at SPring-8. The PDRA will be responsible for integrating the structural results with the PDRA working on biophysical/kinetic experiments.

You should have a PhD in a relevant area, with experience in protein crystallography and practical knowledge of molecular biology. Excellent verbal and written communication skills are essential. The post is available for 3 years.

Please send your CV with a detailed cover letter explaining your suitability to Dr Svetlana Antonyuk ([log in to unmask]) and Professor Samar Hasnain ([log in to unmask]). The position is available from October 2016.

Dr. Svetlana Antonyuk
Senior Lecturer
Co-Director of Barkla X-ray Laboratory of Biophysics
Institute of Integrative Biology
Faculty of Health and Life Sciences
University of Liverpool
Life Sciences Building
Liverpool
L69 7ZB
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Phone: +44(0)151-795 5145
Email: [log in to unmask]

http://www.biophysics.liv.ac.uk/
Liverpool is host of BBS2016