Help us make agriculture more sustainable

The Company

At Phytoform we believe in sustainable agriculture and nutrition for all. We see a lack of innovation in the agricultural space around the crops themselves, so we are building a multidisciplinary team to help rectify the situation. We have exciting growth plans over the next year and we are looking for a dedicated research technician to support our wet lab team. We are based at the world leading plant science institute Rothamsted Research just outside of London, United Kingdom.

The Role

If you are looking for a fast-paced environment, new challenges and like working with a multidisciplinary team, then this job is for you. You will be responsible for maintenance of non-sterile and sterile plant material, DNA preparations (mini & midipreps) and media & consumable preparation for the wet lab. If you have previously been part of an academic or industry team, but now would like to work in a start-up environment then you would be a great fit.

You will:

• Track and maintain sterile growth and tissue culture of Arabidopsis, Potato & Tomato plants
• Track and maintain soil grown plants (collaborating with Rothamsted Research Greenhouse team)
• Prepare DNA for downstream applications (transformations, DNA minipreps & midipreps) 
• Prepare custom media for plant tissue culture and general molecular biology
• Maintain wet lab consumable stocks

What you will bring:

• BSc Plant Sciences, Biology or a related subject.
• Experience in sterile working practices, preparing and maintaining media stocks.
• Experience of working with plants in both a laboratory environment and glasshouse.
• Practical experience of laboratory technician/biological scientific research work.
• Excellent written, verbal and interpersonal communication skills.
• Demonstrable numeracy skills.
• Exceptional attention to detail, precision and accuracy, documentation skills and accurate record keeping.
• Great organisational and time management skills with the ability to prioritise, organise and coordinate a range of projects simultaneously.
• The ability to follow written protocols and instructions.
• A flexible and proactive approach to work, working under your own initiative, working out of hours if required.
• Excellent IT skills including Microsoft Office Word and Excel. Experience of successfully using laboratory management software and project management software would be an advantage.
• A team player with an enthusiasm for working in a busy and evolving environment.
  

You get extra points if you:

• Have experience of molecular techniques including cloning and plasmid preparation
• Can demonstrate a strong record of laboratory experience and using a Laboratory Management System. If you bring experience of self-directed, multidisciplinary laboratory work that would be great.
• Have a plant tissue culture skillset. 
• Have previous industry or start-up experience
• Love plants as much as we do

What we offer

• A competitive salary and share options
• The chance to work with a multidisciplinary team changing agriculture
• A flexible working arrangement: early or late working with core hours of 10am-4pm
• Access to a gym & tennis courts
• Access to the cycle to work scheme
  

The Company

At Phytoform Labs Ltd we believe in sustainable agriculture and nutrition for all. We see a lack of innovation in the agricultural space around the crops themselves, so we are building a multidisciplinary team to help rectify the situation. We have exciting growth plans over the next year and we are looking for a talented Microfluidic Scientist to work on tissue culture miniaturisation and CRISPR delivery using microfluidics and plant cells. You’ll be working together with other team members within the method development team. We are based at the world leading plant science institute Rothamsted Research just outside of London, United Kingdom.

The Role

If you are looking for a new challenge and like working with a multidisciplinary team then this job is for you. We are looking for a motivated core team member to work on Phytoform Labs microfluidic technology with a focus on high-throughput plant cell culture and transient cell transfection. You will improve CRISPR delivery into cells and their subsequent regeneration. You will work on prototyping and device improvement, making Phytoform microfluidic tools used for payload delivery of various molecules (DNA, RNA, protein) into cells and plant cell regeneration. If you have previously been part of an academic or industry team, but now would like to work in a fast-paced start-up environment and develop a project from the ground up then you would be a great fit.

You will:

• Improve Phytoform Labs microfluidic device to effectively encapsulate plant cells
• Design new devices that better implement high-throughput encapsulation and plant cell & tissue culture miniaturisation 
• Work with a methods development team to work on better CRISPR delivery into plant cells with microfluidics 
• Collaborate with various partners (including academic organisations) on developing a fully integrated high-throughput plant cell microfluidic device
• Post prototyping, deploy devices into the internal Phytoform R&D crop improvement pipeline

Requirements

• PhD in Engineering, Bioengineering or a related subject
• Practical experience assembling and testing droplet generation, encapsulation and droplet sorting in microfluidics
• Ability to prototype, build and co-ordinate building of microfluidic devices 
• Previous record of running a molecular or cell biology process on a microfluidic device
• Practical experience with real-time droplet imaging & flow and droplet measurements
• Strong Rapid prototyping, design & CAD experience
• Experience working in a clean and/or sterile environment
• Self-driven with effective time management and multitasking capability.
• Excellent written and oral communication & ability to work well in a team
• Excellent documentation, IT & numerical skills
• Ability to work in a results-driven environment

You get extra points if you:

• Have experience with CRISPR-genome editing workflows in microfluidic devices
• Have worked in the past with plant cells – protoplasts
• Have been in the past a technical lead on a multidisciplinary microfluidic project
• Have some project management experience
• Proficiently use a Laboratory Information Management System
• Have previous experience in start ups
• Have passion for sustainability, food, plants and Agriculture in general

What we offer

• Competitive salary
• Share of value you create through Employee Stock Option Plan
• The chance to work with a multidisciplinary team revolutionising  agriculture
• A flexible working arrangement: early or late working with core hours of 10am-4pm
• Occasional working from home
• Access to a gym & tennis courts
• Access to the cycle to work scheme

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