Molecular Modeller - [Archived Advertisement]

The Opportunity

• Interested in researching structure-based protein engineering and small molecule drug design?
• Contribute to CSIRO's Biomedical Manufacturing Research Program
• Great company culture and team environment

CSIRO’s Manufacturing Business Unit brings together multi-disciplinary scientific and engineering capabilities using world-class infrastructure to partner with industry in order to develop innovative products and processes to allow Australian manufacturers to be globally competitive and environmentally sustainable. The Biomedical Manufacturing Research Program works with biomedical companies to deliver new medical treatments and technologies that benefit millions of people in Australia and overseas, helping them live longer, healthier, and more productive lives.

The role of Research Scientist Staff in CSIRO is to conduct innovative research leading to scientific achievements that are aligned with CSIRO’s strategies. You may be engaged in scientific activity ranging from fundamental research to the investigation of specific industry or community problems. You will have the opportunity to build and maintain networks, play a lead role in securing project funds, provide scientific leadership and pursue new ideas and approaches that create new concepts.

The Molecular Modeller will support Biomedical Manufacturing projects involving structure-based protein engineering and small molecule drug design, whilst adhering to health and safety guidelines and safe working practices. 

Your duties will include:

• Designing and developing novel enzymes for real-world biotechnological applications using a structure-based protein engineering approach.
• Applying new bio-informatic tools (i.e. ancestral sequence reconstruction, alphafold 2) to create enzymes with enhanced catalytic activity, substrate specificity and thermal stability.
• Providing in silico binding studies (i.e. molecular docking/ molecular dynamics simulations) to model the interaction between a small molecule and protein target at the atomic level to assist structural biologists and medicinal chemists in structure-based drug design.
• Interacting productively with a diverse multidisciplinary, multi-institutional team to test novel enzyme and/or drug designs.
• Under limited direction, assisting in the planning and preparation of research proposals and carrying out research investigations, requiring originality, creativity and innovation. 

Location: Clayton, VIC
Salary: AU$102k - AU$111k plus up to 15.4% superannuation
Tenure: Indefinite
Reference: 80283

To be considered you will need:

• A PhD (or an equivalent combination of qualifications and research experience) in a relevant field such as Structural Biology, Bioinformatics or Biophysics/Biochemistry.
• Demonstrated experience and expertise in molecular modelling applied to structure-based protein engineering and computer-assisted drug design.
• Expertise in machine-learning algorithms that predicts a protein's 3D structure from its amino acid sequence and ancestral sequence reconstruction for the design of proteins with enhanced and novel features.
• Proven experience in molecular docking and dynamics simulations of ligand-protein interactions.
• Excellent communication skills and a track record of publication in peer reviewed journals and/or authorship of scientific papers, reports, grant applications or patents.
• Demonstrated ability to undertake original, creative and innovative research by generating and pursuing novel ideas and solutions to scientific research problems.

For full details about this role please review the Position Description

Eligibility

To be appointed to this position you must be an Australian/New Zealand Citizen, or an Australian Permanent Resident currently residing in Australia.

The successful applicant will be required to obtain and provide a National Police Check or equivalent. Additional integrity checks may be required for specific roles which require security clearance for working with children, Australian Government cybersecurity requirements or other identified security roles.

Flexible Working Arrangements

We work flexibly at CSIRO, offering a range of options for how, when and where you work. 

Diversity and Inclusion

We are working hard to recruit people representing the diversity across our society, and ensure that all our people feel supported to do their best work and feel empowered to let their ideas flourish. 

About CSIRO

At CSIRO Australia's national science agency, we solve the greatest challenges through innovative science and technology. We put the safety and wellbeing of our people above all else and earn trust everywhere because we only deal in facts. We collaborate widely and generously and deliver solutions with real impact. 

Join us and start creating tomorrow today!

How to Apply

Please apply on-line and provide a cover letter and CV that best demonstrate your motivation and ability to meet the requirements of this role.

Applications Close

Sunday 6 February 2022, 11:00pm AEDT