Staff Scientist – cancer drug resistance – BASE Rx

Do you want to help us improve human health and understand life on Earth? Make your mark by shaping the future to enable or deliver life-changing science to solve some of humanity’s greatest challenges.

We have an exciting opportunity for a Staff Scientist to join us to predict drug resistance in cancer using gene editing. This will be for a 18 month fixed term contract.

About The Role

Drug resistance is a major limitation to the long-term efficacy of drugs used to treat patients with cancer. The aim of this project is to use CRISPR/Cas9-based screening technologies, such as base editing and prime editing, to systematically investigate drug resistance in chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML), colon and breast cancers. These datasets will help develop our understanding of cancer drug resistance mechanisms, and will be used to direct new therapeutic strategies to overcome drug resistant disease. The Staff Scientist will be responsible for designing and executing large-scale CRISPR/Cas9-based screens and contribute to an ambitious project to predict drug resistance mutations in cancer.

About Us

You will be part of an ambitious research project funded by Innovate UK and the Wellcome Sanger Institute that aims to use gene editing screens to predict cancer drug resistance mechanisms before they emerge in the clinic.

You will be part of the Coelho group, and involved in an exciting project – BASE Rx – Base editing Assessment of Somatic Evolution on Therapy (Rx). The aim of BASE Rx is to improve the way we treat drug resistant cancers through accelerated discovery of cancer drug resistance mechanisms using high-throughput gene editing. Our team generate large-scale datasets using large-scale screens with cutting-edge gene editing technologies such as CRISPR/Cas9, base editing and prime editing in cancer cells and tumour organoids. We also couple gene editing to single-cell transcriptomics to understand the underlying mechanisms driving cancer and drug resistance at scale. We work closely with the Garnett group and other teams within the Cancer Ageing and Somatic Mutation Programme at the Wellcome Sanger Institute.

Our Research Focuses On

CRISPR/Cas9 biotechnologies and their use to study cancer variant function and drug resistance:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39424923/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36669486/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38225637/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37214176/

About You

We are seeking a highly-motivated Staff Scientist to investigate genetic mechanisms of drug resistance in cancer. This is an exciting opportunity to use cutting-edge gene editing technologies at scale to find new ways to tackle drug resistance.

Essential Skills

• PhD in a biological science.
• Experience in a cancer research and gene editing techniques.
• Ability to follow instructions/protocols accurately & efficiently.
• Experience in genomics and preparation of sequencing libraries.
• Ability to keep good scientific records.
• Experience in mammalian cell culture.
• Extensive experience with molecular biology techniques.
• Computer literate.
• Proven ability to work effectively within a team.
• Demonstrable attention to detail.
• Ability to work independently and organise workload.
• Excellent communication skills.
• Demonstrated ability to adapt to regularly changing priorities and workloads.
  
  

Desirable Skills

• Experience in functional genomics screens.
• Experience in project and team management in a laboratory setting.
• Experience in flow cytometry.
  
  

Other Information

Salary per annum: £44,890-£53,331 (dependent upon skills and experience)

Application Process

Please apply with your CV and a cover letter describing why you are applying for the role and outlining how you meet the application criteria.

Closing Date: 2nd April 2025

Hybrid Working At Wellcome Sanger

We recognise that there are many benefits to Hybrid Working; including an improved work-life balance, with more focused time, as well as the ability to organise working time so that collaborative opportunities and team discussions are facilitated on campus. The hybrid working arrangement will vary for different roles and teams. The nature of your role and the type of work you do will determine if a hybrid working arrangement is possible.

Equality, Diversity And Inclusion

We aim to attract, recruit, retain and develop talent from the widest possible talent pool, thereby gaining insight and access to different markets to generate a greater impact on the world. We have a supportive culture with the following staff networks, LGBTQ+, Parents and Carers, Disability and Race Equity to bring people together to share experiences, offer specific support and development opportunities and raise awareness. The networks are also a place for allies to provide support to others.

We want our people to be whoever they want to be because we believe people who bring their best selves to work, do their best work. That’s why we’re committed to creating a truly inclusive culture at Sanger Institute. We will consider all individuals without discrimination and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees, where everyone can thrive.

Our Benefits

We are proud to deliver an awarding campus-wide employee wellbeing strategy and programme. The importance of good health and adopting a healthier lifestyle and the commitment to reduce work-related stress is strongly acknowledged and recognised at Sanger Institute.

Sanger Institute became a signatory of the International Technician Commitment initiative In March 2018. The Technician Commitment aims to empower and ensure visibility, recognition, career development and sustainability for technicians working in higher education and research, across all disciplines.