Imperial College London
Imperial College London - PIONEER (Programmable In-Organelle Nucleic-acid Entry, Expression and Retention) research opportunities
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Job ref: NAT02231-34;38
Closing date: 23 August 2026
About the roles
PIONEER (Programmable In-Organelle Nucleic-acid Entry, Expression and Retention) is an ambitious UK research consortium from Imperial College London, the University of Bristol, and the University of Glasgow, funded through the UK’s Advanced Research and Innovation Agency’s (ARIA) Precision Mitochondria programme, with a single bold goal: to build, from end to end, the ability to engineer the genome of mitochondria, the energy-producing compartments inside our cells. Mitochondria carry their own small genome, and reliably installing new, synthetic genetic material inside them has long been one of the great unsolved problems in biology. PIONEER sets out to crack it: to deliver large pieces of synthetic mitochondrial DNA across the mitochondria's notoriously difficult double membrane, switch on new genes inside, and make those changes stable over time. Ultimately, PIONEER seeks to demonstrate successful mitochondrial genome engineering in vivo and thereby open a new frontier for fundamental biology and for future therapies against mitochondrial disease.
Opportunities
Research Associate posts available:
For the Research Associate posts, please note that interviews will be held on a rolling basis while the advert is live. It is therefore strongly recommended that you submit your application as early as possible. The adverts will be closed once a suitable candidate is selected.
NAT02233 - Research Associate in Organic Chemistry
A Research Associate in Organic Chemistry is available to join the PIONEER programme. You will develop and synthesise the bespoke polymerisable monomers at the heart of our stimuli-responsive nanogel delivery platform, working in a rare interdisciplinary environment spanning synthetic chemistry, nanomedicine, AI-driven materials discovery, and genome engineering.
NAT02232 - Research Associate in Automated Workflows for Nanogel Screening
This particular research post will focus on developing and exploiting an automated high-throughput workflow for the synthesis and, characterisation, and optimisation of precision polymer nanogels for programmable mitochondria delivery. This will involve the further development of an in-house developed automated workflow for the synthetic screening of nanogel formulations and will include miniaturisation and the incorporation of machine learning-based optimisation algorithms to target polymer nanogels with optimised biophysicochemical properties.
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NAT02231 - Research Associate for the Development of Lipid-Based Synthetic Cells Capable of Delivering Genetic Cargo into Mitochondria in Living Cells
This role offers the opportunity to develop programmable lipid-based synthetic cells loaded with mtDNA using microfluidics, apply automated and closed-loop optimisation approaches to improve delivery performance, and develop a high-throughput automated bio-screens incorporating optical trapping that will aid the development of these synthetic cells.
NAT02234 - Research Associate in Spectroscopic Methods for Mitochondrial Biology
A Research Associate in Spectroscopic Methods for Mitochondrial Biology to join the group of Professor Maxie Roessler is available within the PIONEER programme. This research post will focus on using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy as a technique to establish the location of DNA in mitochondria.
The following Systems Integrator opportunity is also available, with a closing date of 06 August 2026.
We reserve the right to close the advert prior to the closing date stated, should we receive a high volume of applications. It is therefore advisable that you submit your application as early as possible to avoid disappointment.
NAT02238 - Systems Integrator
We are seeking a motivated, scientifically experienced and highly organised Systems Integrator to join the team for PIONEER – an ambitious, ARIA-funded UK research consortium with a single bold goal: to build, from end to end, the capability to engineer the genome of mitochondria. PIONEER brings together Imperial College London, the University of Bristol, and the University of Glasgow, spanning polymer nanomedicine, AI-driven materials discovery, synthetic cell engineering, single-molecule biophysics, advanced spectroscopy, genome engineering, and single-cell genetics.
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PhD studentships available:
Funding Notes
For these opportunities, applicants should also clearly state how they are eligible for Home fee status (for example through UK citizenship or because they hold Settled Status, more information about fee status can be found here: View Website).
PhD position available in High-Throughput Biological Screening Platforms for Mitochondrial Genome Engineering
This is a rare opportunity to place biological assay development and high-throughput screening at the heart of one of biology's great unsolved problems. As part of project PIONEER, the successful candidate will design and deploy cellular and biochemical assay pipelines to evaluate novel delivery systems targeting the mitochondria, the energy-producing organelles that carry their own genome, enabling the first reliable platform for mitochondrial genome engineering and targeted drug delivery.
PhD position available in Synthetic Chemistry for Development of Mitochondria Targeting and Genome Engineering
This is a rare chance to apply organic chemistry at the frontier of one of biology's great unsolved problems. You will design and synthesise novel small-molecule and ligand-based systems to ferry synthetic DNA across the double membrane of mitochondria, the energy-producing organelles that carry their own genome, enabling the first reliable platform for mitochondrial genome engineering and drug delivery and targeting.
PhD position available in Machine Learning and Automation of Polymer Nanogel Discovery for Mitochondria Delivery
Link: [PhD position available in Machine Learning and Automation of Polymer Nanogel Discovery for Mitochondria Delivery at Imperial College London on FindAPhD.com](https://www.findaphd.com/phds/project/phd-position-available-in-machine-learning-and-automation-of-polymer-nanogel-discovery-for-mitochondria-delivery_92494
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