Principal Synthetic Biologist
10 days ago
Newcastle upon Tyne
CK Group are recruiting for a highly motivated and experienced Principal Synthetic Biologist to join a growing biotechnological company in Newcastle on a three month fixed term contract (starting on 2nd March 2026) with scope to be made permanent. A great opportunity to work in a cutting-edge field with a company at the forefront of biotechnological research and be part of a visionary team developing solutions for tomorrow’s challenges. Company: A newly formed biotechnology organisation with state-of-the-art microbial engineering facilities, focused on building a biological and digital platform for biological assets supply chain management. The Role: To design, execute, validate, and iterate complex chromosomal engineering programs in microbes. This will be a hand-on role where as Principal Biologist you will be capable of taking a biological objective from concept through engineered strains, sequencing-based validation, and interpretation under stress or evolutionary conditions. Responsibilities: • Design and execute scarred and scarless chromosomal integrations across diverse microbes (e.g. E. coli, B. subtilis, P. putida, S. cerevisiae, etc)., • Perform multi-round, multi-locus genome engineering without marker exhaustion, • Actively use and help configure ELN and/or LIMS systems to track: strain lineages, construct versions, sequencing data, • Scientifically direct outsourced bioreactor work end-to-end (design, oversight, QC acceptance, and interpretation), without being the hands-on operator of the reactors., • Sequencing & Data Interpretation - Design DNA-seq and RNA-seq experiments aligned to engineering questions Your Background: Essential: • PhD in synthetic biology/engineering biology with industry experience, • Must have hands-on experience in microbial strain/genetic engineering (5 - 10 years), • Demonstrated expertise in chromosomal (not plasmid-only) modification, • Mastery of scarred and scarless genome editing techniques (CRISPR selection: Cas9/Cas12a DSB), • Hands-on user of Electronic Lab Notebooks (ELNs) and/or Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS) in a synthetic biology or strain engineering environment. Strongly Preferred • Multi-host experience across Gram-negative, Gram-positive, and yeast systems, • Sequencing-first engineering mindset, • Prior experience in industrial or production-adjacent strain development, • Familiarity with lab automation and digital lab systems Apply: It is essential that applicants hold entitlement to work in the UK. Please quote job reference 171 853 in all correspondence. If this position isn't suitable but you are looking for a new role, or if you are interested in seeing what opportunities are out there, head over to our LinkedIn page (cka-group) and follow us to see our latest jobs and company news.