Postdoctoral studies in in DNA repair and translational drug discovery (Scholarship)

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The Helleday Laboratory at Karolinska Institutet is a world-leading environment in DNA repair and translational drug discovery, with a strong track record in developing first-in-class therapeutics. Our research bridges medicinal chemistry, chemical biology, and clinical application, particularly in targeting DNA repair pathways in the context of cancer, inflammation, and fibrosis. As part of our team, you will work at the forefront of PROTAC and small-molecule drug development, with direct opportunities to translate discoveries into therapeutic strategies. You will join a highly collaborative and international environment with access to state-of-the-art infrastructure and expertise.
Duties
Working closely with the medicinal chemistry team leader, you will advance our medicinal chemistry efforts aimed at developing novel therapeutics targeting DNA repair enzymes, with a particular focus on DNA glycosylases.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Design, synthesis, and optimisation of small-molecule inhibitors targeting DNA repair enzymes. In silico design of inhibitors, molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulations.
• Close collaboration with interdisciplinary teams to evaluate compounds in biochemical and cellular assays.
• Contribution to assay development, including metabolic stability assays.
• Preparation of scientific publications, presentations and grant applications.
• Supervision of undergraduate students.

Entry requirements
Postdoctoral scholarships may be established for foreign researchers who pursue their merit in Sweden. A foreign researcher is a person living in another country who comes to Sweden with the intention of only staying in Sweden for all or part of their postdoctoral education at KI. Persons who are resident in Sweden and/or have carried out all or part of their academic education at KI or some other educational institution in Sweden cannot be considered for scholarships. The purpose of scholarships for postdoctoral qualification is to promote internationalization and contribute to research qualification after a doctorate or equivalent.

A scholarship for carrying out postdoctoral research can be granted for a maximum of two years within a four-year period following the receipt of a doctoral degree or equivalent.

To be eligible for a postdoctoral scholarship, the person must have obtained a doctorate, or a foreign degree deemed to be equivalent to a doctorate. Applicants who have not completed a doctorate at the end of the application period may also apply, provided that all requirements for a completed degree are met before the (intended) start date of the post-doctoral education.

In addition, the successful candidate should have:

• A PhD in Medicinal Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, or a closely related discipline.
• A minimum of 4 years of research experience in organic chemistry with significant emphasis on medicinal chemistry.
• Demonstrated expertise in the design, synthesis, and optimisation of small-molecule inhibitors.
• Strong synthetic chemistry background, with demonstrated experience overcoming challenges such as poor aqueous solubility or tautomeric instability in lead series.
• Experience with metabolic stability assays.
• Experience or working knowledge of biochemical assays and subsequent data interpretation.
• A strong team spirit and safe lab practice.
• Significant experience in mentorship and supervision of junior researchers.

Meritorious qualifications include:

• Familiarity with structure-based drug design and computational chemistry tools.
• Expertise in the design and execution of multi-step synthetic routes.
• Expertise in prodrug development and covalent inhibitor design.
• Experience in scale-up. Knowledge of ADME and pharmacokinetic optimisation.
• Experience working in international and interdisciplinary environments bridging chemistry and biology.

What do we offer?
A creative and inspiring environment with wide-ranging expertise and interests. Karolinska Institutet is one of the world's leading medical universities. Here, we conduct innovative medical research and provide the largest range of biomedical education in Sweden. At KI, you get to meet researchers working with a wide range of specialisms and methods, giving you ample opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience with the various scientific fields within medicine and health. It is the crossover collaborations, which have pushed KI to where it is today, at the forefront of global research. Several of the people you meet in healthcare are educated at KI. A close relationship with the health care providers is important for creating groundbreaking top quality education and research. Students and employees have free access to our modern gym facilities with trained staff on site.

Location: Science for Life Laboratory, Solna

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Conditions for scholarship holders | Staff Portal
Type of scholarship
The amount is tax free and it is set for twelve months at a time, paid out on a six months basis. In exceptional cases, shorter periods may be acceptable.
Application process
An application must contain the following documents in English or Swedish:

• A complete curriculum vitae, including date of the thesis defence, title of the thesis, previous academic positions, academic title, current position, academic distinctions, and committee work
• A complete list of publications
• A summary of current work (no more than one page)

The application is to be submitted on the Varbi recruitment system. Apply at the latest 23 rd September.
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