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Research Scientist

Role:  Research Scientist
Reports to: Research and Development Manager
Location:  Melbourne, VIC, 3000
Salary:  $105,000 - $132,000

About the project:

An accumulating body of evidence suggests that mitochondrial DNA mutations are an important driver of ageing (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbadis.2018.09.035). Systematic Medicine is establishing a new project to investigate this further. 

The initial focus of the project will be to determine if the increase in mitochondrial mutations seen with age in post-mitotic tissues (e.g. brain) is also present in highly proliferative tissues. After this initial step the researcher will drive the direction of the project, with regular feedback and support from stakeholders. 

Our lab is currently in housing CODEC-seq (https://doi.org/10.1038/s41588-023-01376-0), a new assay for measuring DNA mutations with an unprecedentedly low error rate. We have also developed a novel method for measuring genomic DNA lesions using LA-PCR technology. Both these assays could be adapted for use in this project.

Lead your own project and be part of research strategy

Our research scientists each lead their own independent project and are expected to help shape its direction. This is not a management role, so you need to be happy to do your own experiments with the support of research assistants. You will start by leading the project above, but we are looking for scientists who can develop their own research strategies using our root cause analysis approach.

Long-term well paid permanent contract, no grant writing

We retain great staff long term. We offer a combination of competitive salary, permanent contract, career progression, and interesting research.

Employment is not tied to a particular project. If a project is discontinued researchers are able to shift to other similar research projects.

Great location and infrastructure

We are located in the Jumar Bioincubator in Parkville (within the new CSL building). It offers a great opportunity to network with other early stage biotech companies and access research platforms. We are fully funded by our parent company Leading Technology Group, with a long-term research focus.

Company culture

This article explains our company culture more eloquently than we could.

https://hbr.org/2019/01/the-hard-truth-about-innovative-cultures 

About the company:  A biotech probing the root causes of aging at the fundamental level

Systematic Medicine’s goal is to develop therapeutics that slow or prevent the accumulation of genomic damage that occurs with age. Our researchers conduct a combination of 

• Fundamental research: to identify the root causes of genomic damage and validate their consequences.
• Translational research: to develop strategies to target these root causes to either slow or reverse the damage.

The ideal candidate:

We value good experimental design and statistics very highly. We would rather hire a candidate who is exceptional in these areas (and open to learning more), than a researcher with a high h-index or familiarity with a specific assay.

Selection criteria:

• PhD in science
• Strong foundational knowledge of cell and molecular biology
• Experience with molecular biology assays
• Experience with computational biology (e.g. R, Python)
• Strong understanding of statistics, experimental design and the scientific method

Recruitment process

Send CV and completed test for prospective candidates to recruitment@systematicmedicine.com

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/4etoznhhmzk85rthghu2k/Systematic-Medicine-exercise-for-prospective-candidates.docx?rlkey=f6fpxgcad2tp35lidxpeq90k4&st=aqjalwdh&dl=0 

Feel free to include a few sentences in your email explaining why are interested in the role or anything else. We prefer short, genuine, to the point pieces of information written by the candidate. 

Applications open: 14th October – 10th November

Phone interviews: 11th November – 22nd November

In person interviews: 25th November – 6th December

Offers will be made shortly after this, with the successful candidate starting as soon as they are ready.