Microbiology Technician

We are looking for a skilled, hands-on microbiology lab technician to join our multi-disciplinary team in our mission to harness the potential of unculturable microbes.

Company

Bactobio is a young London-based BioTech company (2020) using AI, genomics, and synthetic biology to culture previously unculturable microbes and screen them for antimicrobials. We regularly discover chemically novel antimicrobials that are effective against some of the biggest infectious diseases in agritech and healthcare, and select diseases to target based on the lack of current, effective solutions and the potential market size.

You will develop and execute our commercialisation strategy, communicate the potential of our platform, and initiate strategic, scientific, and commercial partnerships. You will also help us win large grants to fuel the discovery and development of our antimicrobial compounds.

Our work culture is built around impact, empowerment, and collaboration, and we have managed to attract incredible scientists from world-leading institutions, alongside operational experts. We believe that open and inclusive conversations lead to better solutions. As a result, we have created a unique work environment, where ambitious people enjoy working together to make the world greener and safer.

Team

Our microbial generation team oversees the generation, processing, and stocking of novel species of microbes.

Together we have used extensive data collection and a range of bioinformatics approaches to culture more than 2000 previously unexplored microbial species. We continue to grow our library by employing a variety of sequencing approaches including whole genome sequencing, amplicon sequencing and shotgun metagenomics to strengthen our understanding of individual microbes and the soil microbiome. On top of this, we apply co-occurrence and reactome techniques to understand the relationships between individual species and are implementing machine learning to iteratively improve our experimentation to increase our microbial capture rates.

We are a diverse team, using a range of capabilities to continue to increase our cultivation rates for novel species through further technological development of the platform and automated pipelines. This allows for exploration of a greater chemical space (e.g. carbon sources, nitrogen sources) and biological space (e.g. helper strains, symbionts) to culture truly novel microbes.

Role

In this role, you will facilitate the expansion of our library of novel microbes and support our vision to discover solutions to global issues including the discovery of new antibiotics against resistant bacteria and fungicides to support global food security.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Supporting the Microbial Generation team in isolation of novel species of microbes
• Supporting the Screening team in running routine bioassays and sample extractions
• Maintenance of our microbial library, including using various methods to stock our strains Maintenance of the pipeline for microbial isolation and passaging samples for isolation of microbial species
• DNA harvesting and library preparation for NGS
• Preparation of media for DOE-driven experiments
• Ownership of project(s) and upskilling in various areas of the Bactobio pipeline

You should have:

• A Master’s degree or above in life sciences, or a BSc in life sciences plus equivalent experience
• Experience working with sterile technique including handling of agar plates and liquid culture Experience with working with bacteria (a plus if it’s with species which are difficult to culture in the lab)
• Interest in biotechnology and enthusiasm for scientific discovery
• Ability to work independently as well as within a team

It would be great if you had:

• Experience working in industry for 1-2 years
• Experience with next generation sequencing (NGS), especially library preparation for Illumina and nanopore sequencing
• Experience working with liquid-handling robots

Benefits:

• The chance to be part of an impact-driven, fun, multicultural, kind, and ambitious crowd
• Daily access to academic leaders, business leaders, and unicorn founders
• 25 days holiday + bank holidays
• Enhanced parental leave (12 weeks maternity / 6 weeks paternity)
• Enhanced Sick Pay
• Paid sabbatical after 5 years employment
• Flexible start and finish times within the company’s core hours to fit your preferences
• Weekly team activities including board games, sports activities, and socials on Fridays
• Complimentary snacks, fruits, tea, coffee, soft drinks,...
• Access to 1000s of training courses through Udemy, with an allowance for both personal development and work-related training
• Bike2Work scheme
• Employee Assistance Programme offering structured counselling, life and career coaching, legal and financial advice platform