Sustaining Innovation Postdoctoral Research Associate 

Project Title: 	Improving the sensitivity and accuracy of ligand 
detection and placement into X-ray and cryo-EM maps

Job Type: 3 Year Fixed Term Contract, Full Time

Location: Cambridge, UK

Astex Pharmaceuticals is a world leader in innovative drug discovery 
and development. The company has successfully applied its proprietary 
Fragment-Based Drug Discovery platform to generate multiple new drug 
candidates that are progressing in clinical development.  Successful 
collaborations have led to two launched oncology drugs (Kisqali 
partnered with Novartis and BalversaTM partnered with Janssen). Astex
continues to grow and focuses on Oncology and Neurological Disorders.

							                                
The Astex Sustaining Innovation Postdoctoral research program has a 
track record of performing cutting-edge research and development and is
a key element of our excellent scientific culture. During your SI 
Postdoc project you will be exposed to a multi-disciplinary pharma 
environment. Youll benefit from our internal training seminars that 
will enhance your understanding of the drug discovery process. As part 
of your career development, you will have the opportunity to present 
your work within the company and at external meetings and youll be 
expected to publish your findings in high-impact journals.

A postdoctoral position is available within the Molecular Sciences 
department to develop automated ligand fitting guided by experimental 
electron density / electrostatic potential maps. The project will focus
on locating, sharpening and classifying unmodelled regions of density, 
determining the identity of the binder using density shape and other 
physical properties derived from the surroundings, and subsequently 
fitting the molecule taking potential interactions with the environment
into account. Any new methods will be benchmarked using publicly 
available datasets and a proprietary Astex data repository containing 
over 10000 protein-ligand complexes.

Candidate Requirements 

 - PhD in crystallography, structural biology, computing, or a related 
   discipline 
 - Good understanding of protein-ligand interactions
 - Familiarity with ligand docking
 - Experience with crystallographic computing is a plus
 - Expert knowledge in Python
 - Experience with artificial intelligence and cheminformatics is a plus
 - Familiarity with common software development tools and practices 
   (version control, testing, etc.)
 - Excellent team working, written and verbal communication skills

We offer excellent training and career development opportunities as 
well as competitive salary and benefits package.  

At Astex we embrace diversity and equality of opportunity. 
We are committed to building an inclusive and diverse Company 
representing all backgrounds, harnessing industry-leading scientific 
innovation and behaviours

To apply please send your CV and a cover letter, quoting the job 
reference:  SI-M003 to recruitment.uk^astx.com