Research Fellow in Antigen Display Characterisation

at  University College London

ABOUT US

This position is a key part of the Vaccines Manufacturing Hub for LMICs (VaxHub Global), led by UCL Biochemical Engineering and the University of Oxford with a number of academic and industrial partners. VaxHub Global is funded with a £10M grant from the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and managed by The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), as part of the UK Vaccine Network, a UK Aid programme to develop vaccines for diseases with epidemic potential in LMICs. Additional co-funding from the EPSRC is provided to leverage impact for the UK. VaxHub Global builds on the success of Vax-Hub 1, which was originally formed in 2018 with a grant from the DHSC. Most prominently, Vax-Hub 1 research underpinned the development of the ChAdOx-1 nCoV-19 vaccine, subsequently licensed to AstraZeneca, with direct benefit to over 180 countries worldwide, including the UK. The vision for VaxHub Global is to deliver flexible, easily transferable multi-product platforms and simplified engineering solutions that enable development of low cost, effective and globally deployable vaccines to LMICs.

A new Research Fellow position in antigen display characterisation is now available. The position, based in the UCL Department of Biochemical Engineering, will address the development of experimental and computational tools to better understand the formation, stability and function of covalent and non-covalent antigen display for vaccines candidates. Proof of concept studies at UCL have shown antigen display on protein nanoparticlesusing different attachment methods. Models will be developed to simulate the dynamic nature of these methods, supported by characterisation of the proportion of functional antigens presented. The PDRA will develop mass-transport simulations to capture the various stages of assembly and disassembly of dynamic vaccine nanoparticles as well as the immunoassays and analytics needed to study them. These findings will allow a deeper understanding of the workings and potential of modular vaccine candidates employing advanced display strategies towards low cost, scalable and accessible modular vaccines for global good. These tools have further application towards the development of diagnostic tools for vaccine stability testing. The postholder will be responsible for undertaking original experimental research,reporting on project progress and the preparation and submission of research papers arising from these and related studies. The postholder will be one of a team of UCL-based researchers working as part of VaxHub Global, as well as several academic and industrial collaborators, so excellent team-working and communication skills will be required. The UCL Department of Biochemical Engineering has excellent research facilities including a full-scale £25m bioprocessing pilot plant.