Octarine's mission is to solve our greatest health challenges by enabling innovative cannabinoid and psychedelic therapeutics. Many neurological and psychological conditions are poorly served by current drugs, leaving physicians, patients, and their families desperately seeking alternative therapies, sometimes illegally. Cannabinoids and psychedelics are poised to offer breakthrough therapies for these debilitating conditions, but to realize the full potential of these molecules, issues with their production and undesirable properties must first be solved. Octarine is perfecting a biological approach to producing improved & novel cannabinoid and psychedelic molecules with tailored modes-of-action. Our proprietary technology combines synthetic biology, microbial fermentation and enzymatic derivatization to develop IP protected drug candidates that are validated in pre-clinical screening.

Job Description

We’re looking for an experienced enzyme engineer to lead our efforts in developing improved enzyme biocatalysts. You will join a diverse team of biochemists, metabolic engineers and molecular biologists and be responsible for discovering and improving enzymes for use in our biosynthetic production platforms and biocatalytic enzyme cascades, both leading to the production of a broad range of natural and novel drug candidates.

In the role you will leverage bioinformatics and “omics” toolboxes to identify promising enzyme candidates, utilize various computational and in silico modelling tools to predict important residues to target for mutation, and conduct HTP directed evolution experiments to improve the properties of enzymes for a desired function. Desired properties to improve include catalytic activity, substrate scope, and substrate specificity.

Our ideal candidate will be able to handle as many of the following scientific areas as possible:

 - Gene hunting: A proven track record mining omics databases to identify gene candidates for a particular catalytic function

- Computational skills: Experience using the latest in silico tools to model and predict enzyme function

- Enzyme engineering: An ability to analyse gene/protein sequences and identify hot spots for mutagenesis

- Wet lab skills: Design, set-up and execute HTP directed evolution screens to identify improved variants

Other useful (non-scientific) attributes which will be viewed favourably include

-       Well organized: As a start-up things often move very fast! You will need to have exceptional organizational skills to keep up

- Team player: Our research team functions as a well-oiled machine, working together to efficiently design and test hypotheses. You'll need to thrive in a team environment and have fantastic communication skills to become a successful cog in our machine.

- The right mind-set: A start-up can at times be a chaotic and highly dynamic environment, priorities can quickly change so you must be flexible enough to change direction.

- Responsibility: We're a small company with a flat hierarchy and we expect you to take responsibility for your role in it. You should be comfortable making important decisions on the direction of our research, and confident enough to see them through to completion.

Professional requirements

- PhD in enzyme engineering, synthetic biology, biochemistry, bioinformatics or a related field

- Experience supervising students / technicians

- Demonstrated ability to successfully complete enzyme engineering projects e.g., through scientific publications and patents

- Diverse knowledge base of both wet lab and computational tools

- Experience with molecular modelling and visualization tools such as Rosetta and PyMol, along with scripting tools (e.g., Python, R, MatLab)

What we can offer

Octarine is a young biotech company expanding rapidly to become a world leader in the field. This is an exciting opportunity to be part of an ambitious and fast-paced company and play an active role in our growth and future success. We're a friendly and social bunch and provide a fun but scientifically stimulating work environment. We're also based in the center of one of Europe's most vibrant cities, and in a country known for its high quality of life and exceptional work / life balance.

If you're excited to join us please apply with CV and cover letter including relevant publications/patents. Applications assessed on an ongoing basis, immediate start.