The Protein Production and Characterization Platform at Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Protein Research is seeking an academic employee or laboratory technician to the Biophysics team. The position is fixed-term and has a start date on the 8 January 2024 to and including 31 December 2024.

About us

Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Protein Research (CPR) (https://www.cpr.ku.dk) comprises a wide range of expertise and skills within its research programs spanning disease systems biology, proteomics, high throughput protein production and characterization, chemical biology, disease biology, and protein therapeutics. The center contributes to the progress of translational research within medicine and provides fundamental insights that can be used to promote drug discovery and development.

The Protein Production and Characterization platform is part of the Protein Structure and Function program. The Biophysics platform houses state of the art biophysical instrumentation for the characterization of biomolecules and their interactions (https://www.cpr.ku.dk/research/facilities/protein-production-and-characterization/biophysics/). We support CPR researchers and external academic users through the Integrative Structural Biology Cluster (ISBUC) at the University of Copenhagen in the performance, design, and analysis of a variety of biophysical experiments. We run mass spectrometry as a tool for protein and small molecule identification and for de novo identification of proteins.

Profile

As member of the Biophysics team you will be involved in various aspects of biophysical protein characterization and will have an overall overview of the platform set-up and daily activities. Your main area of responsibility will be the mass spectrometry analysis of samples produced within the Program, both by the Protein Production Platform and the Program Research Groups. Your tasks will include:

• Processing of samples for analysis for intact mass, in solution, gel band identification and other biophysical experiments
• Operating laboratory instruments (LC-MS and SECMALS) according to established standard operating procedures (SOPs) in the platform
• Running periodically maintenance and sanity checks procedures on the facility instrumentation (e.g., evaluate instrument performance by running standard test samples)
• Keep accurate records and electronic logbooks of both the instrumentation and experiments
• General laboratory operation and maintenance, including ordering reagents, supplies, preparing buffer stocks, document laboratory safety records and perform chemical risk assessments
• Any other relevant duties regarding biophysical characterization as reasonably associated with the position

Qualifications

The candidate is expected to have a practical background within protein chemistry, experience with protein analysis and LC-MS/MS technology. Knowledge of other biophysical methods would be considerate as an advantage. We expect candidates with various technical or academic educational backgrounds to apply. The practical experience of the applicants will be one of the main criteria for eligibility. The ideal candidate should be reliable and well organized and fulfill the qualifications below:

• 1-2 years of experience in a MS academics platform or similar industrial set-up
• Knowledge of LC-MS data acquisition and analysis software using Bruker packages or equivalent
  • Intact mass analysis of proteins and other biomolecules
  • Identification of proteins (in-gel or in-solution)
• Good analytical troubleshooting experience
• Experience in handling Thermo Orbitrap and/or Bruker QTOF instrumentation
• Service-minded and good collaboration skills
• Ability and enthusiasm to learn new techniques/skills
• Good knowledge of English

Terms of salary and employment

Your employment will be at Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Protein Research, University of Copenhagen. The position is full-time (37 hours per week) and for 1 year until 31 December 2024, and it is open for appointment as soon as possible.

Employment as an academic employee will be in accordance with the Circular on the Collective Agreement concerning Academics in the state sector concluded between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and Akademikerne (the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations).                                                                                                                                              

Employment as laboratory technician will be in accordance with the collective Agreement between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and the Organisations of Public Employees – governmental institutions (the OAO-