Research Associate

 About the role

Applications are invited for a talented and enthusiastic postdoctoral scientist to join Professor Cathy Shanahan’s laboratory at the School of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Medicine & Sciences of King's College London. The postholder will engage in internationally-leading research in the field of vascular calcification and take a role in determining the future path of this research. The post will involve data collection, analysis and report writing and attendance to present research findings and papers at internal academic meetings and external professional conferences.  We are looking for a conscientious and committed member of the team who is willing to facilitate collaboration and networking to support the activities of the Shanahan group.

The post holder will report to Professor Cathy Shanahan and join an internationally recognised team of scientists focussing on understanding the role of smooth muscle cells in vascular calcification. Using both in vitro and in vivo model systems this project will identify key regulators of calcification and their targets and test whether novel therapeutics targeting these pathways can ameliorate calcification.  The candidate should have experience in tissue culture, cell biology and data analysis and a keen interest in vascular research.  Experience in spatial or single-cell transcriptomics and bioinformatics or high throughput screening is highly desirable. The successful candidate will join a research group within the BHF Centre of Research Excellence which provides an excellent highly multidisciplinary environment with state-of-the-art equipment and facilities.  The successful candidate will also be part of an International, LeDucq Network (COMET) focussed on discovery and translation in the field of vascular calcification.

Individuals should be committed to their own personal career development. There will be opportunities to contribute to the supervision of PhD and Masters students and other educational activities as appropriate to the stage of your career.  Individuals should undertake any reasonable duties that may be relevant to the role outline and to contribute to publications arising from this research.

This is a full-time post (35 hours per week), and you will be offered a fixed term contract until 30th December 2027.

About you

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

Essential criteria

• PhD in biological discipline or equivalent (or pending results) 
• Ability to initiate and maintain a high-quality research programme in the specified scientific area 
• Major contribution to the design and execution of an experimental research program 
• Excellent communication skills 
• Managing an independent research project 
• Proactive and self-motivated 
• Commitment and dedication to the project 
• Excellent interpersonal and team work skills

Desirable criteria

• Experience with cell culture techniques 
• Experience in cell biology techniques  
• Good publication record and evidence of contribution to writing 
• Experience working collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams 
• Experience in the field of vascular calcification

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