Research Assistant - mitochondrial disease models
The University of Cambridge wishes to appoint a motivated research assistant to join the research groups of Dr Jelle van den Ameele and Professor Patrick Chinnery at the Department of Clinical Neurosciences and the MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit.
The postholder will assist with research projects that rely on animal models (mouse and Drosophila), by providing support and advice to staff and students. In addition, the postholder will be responsible for their own research project focused on developing novel mRNA-LNP-based gene therapies in mouse models of rare mitochondrial disorders, for which they will be directly supervised by the PIs and senior staff. The post-holder will have the opportunity to take on further post-graduate training opportunities, including as a PhD student.
The main research focus in our labs is on better understanding the molecular mechanisms that underly mitochondrial disease progression, and to translate these insights into novel therapies. The research is supported by extensive funding, including through competitive Wellcome, LifeArc, ARIA and UKRI MRC grants.
You will be involved in research using Drosophila and mouse genetics, cell culture, a wide range of cutting-edge molecular biology and single-cell sequencing approaches, chromatin profiling, microdissection, and confocal and super-resolution imaging in live and fixed samples. On a day-to-day basis, you will provide technical support to experienced researchers with their mouse and Drosophila work and maintenance of the colonies, support the day-to-day running of the laboratory, including ordering supplies and maintaining inventories of reagents and transgenic animals. You will closely interact with other researchers within and outside the lab, have the opportunity to participate actively in experimental design and troubleshooting, have the freedom to develop your own research questions and experiments, and be encouraged to take up training.
Applicants must have a degree in Molecular Biology, Biochemistry or Cell Biology and experience with laboratory data management, transgenic animals, molecular biology and cell biology. Experience with mouse handling is required, and some familiarity with next-generation sequencing library preparation would be advantageous.
You will join a young, dynamic and highly collaborative group, and demonstrate core values of the lab, which include enthusiasm, openness and integrity.
You will be located within the MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit housed in the Wellcome Trust/MRC Building on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, with state-of-the-art facilities available to group members. The team is embedded within the Cambridge Clinical Mitochondrial Disease Research Group (MitoCAMB), to ensure continuous reflection on the translational relevance of the research.
Lab websites:
MRC MBU Research groups: https://www.mrc-mbu.cam.ac.uk/research-groups
Cambridge Clinical Mitochondrial Research team: https://mitocamb.medschl.cam.ac.uk/
Fixed-term: The funds for this post are available until 30 September 2028 in the first instance.
Once an offer of employment has been accepted, the successful candidate will be required to undergo a health assessment.
Please ensure that you upload a covering letter and CV in the Upload section of the online application. The covering letter should outline how you match the criteria for the post and why you are applying for this role. If you upload any additional documents which have not been requested, we will not be able to consider these as part of your application.
Please include details of your referees, including email address and phone number, one of which must be your most recent line manager.
Closing Date: 22nd September 2026
Interview Date: to be confirmed
Please quote reference RR50879 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.
