Research Associate – Protein Science / Synthetic Biology

Living Carbon is a public benefit corporation with a mission to responsibly rebalance the planet’s carbon cycle using the inherent power of plants. We believe that gigaton scale CO2 drawdown will only happen if solutions are both beneficial to the environment and profitable to landowners. We’ve developed photosynthesis-enhanced seedlings that capture carbon faster on underperforming and degraded land. In addition to improving carbon capture rates we are also working on extending the durability of nature based sequestration. We’re backed by some of the most prominent investors in Silicon Valley including Felicis Ventures, YCombinator, and Chris Sacca of LowerCarbon Capital.

If you believe that climate change is the defining global emergency of the century and want to join an ambitious project that’s working on a biological solution, we’d love to hear from you.

Your role:

We are seeking a creative and detail-oriented Research Associate with experience in synthetic biology to support the company’s initiative on prolonged carbon storage. This role requires a core focus on the construction of plasmids for protein expression in various host organisms including algae, protein purification and activity assays. Hands-on experience with techniques in molecular cloning, PCR, protein purification, and activity analysis are highly desirable. The successful candidate will be both a strong lab-based individual contributor and a team player who works well with other scientists. The candidate will contribute to key discovery studies which will have a direct impact on the success of our biotech programs to advance company goals.

Your responsibilities:

• Perform molecular cloning to assemble novel plasmid DNA constructs
• Work on expression of recombinant proteins and characterization of protein expression using standard assays including SDS-PAGE and western blot
• Perform protein purification and in vitro protein activity assays
• Perform plasmid DNA and genomic extraction from E. coli, yeast and algal cells
• Perform standard PCR assays, qPCR assays, and single/multiplex RT-qPCR assays
• Work with supervisor to improve enzyme activities use mutagenesis approaches including directed evolution
• Accurately document experimental protocols, perform analysis and help with interpretation of data, and timely report key findings to supervisor and research team
• Proficiency in working with basic bioinformatic tools including various DNA analysis software programs such as Genious or equivalent, and with Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Powerpoint)

Requirements and qualifications:

• BS in Molecular Biology, Biochemistry, Biology or other related fields with 2 or more years of biotechnology experience in industry or academia
• Technical proficiency in general laboratory practices, including chemical reagents preparation, pH measurement, media preparation, aseptic technique, safety practices, etc.
• Proficiency in molecular cloning, including plasmid DNA construction, transformation, and isolation including mini- and maxi-prepping procedures
• Experience in recombinant protein expression, purification, and characterization is ideal
• Experience in genomic DNA and total RNA isolation from plant tissues
• Experience in PCR, qPCR, and RT-PCR analysis
• Knowledge in DNA analysis software for sequence alignment, comparison, and vector map construction
• Strong organizational and documentation skills
• Experience with database management
• Ability to manage several projects simultaneously
• Effective communication (written/verbal) and ability to work independently and collaboratively as part of a team are critical
• Self-starter who can operate with minimal supervision

Living Carbon PBC offers competitive compensation, and generous healthcare, dental and vision insurance.

Living Carbon PBC is an equal opportunity employer.

We believe the best solutions to climate change are created by diverse teams. Living Carbon is focused on building a multicultural and inclusive team with strong representation from the many diverse communities disproportionately impacted by climate change. As a public benefit corporation, ensuring solutions to slow climate change are widely distributed to all peoples is critical to the success of our mission.