Postdoctoral Fellow – Biocatalysis & Enzyme Discovery Full-time NEW

Postdoctoral Scientist In Biocatalysis And Drug Discovery

Location: Gothenburg, Sweden | Competitive Salary & Benefits Package

Do you have expertise in, and passion for, biocatalysis, bioinformatics, and the discovery of novel enzymes from extreme marine environments? Would you like to apply your knowledge to impact drug discovery in a company that follows the science and turns ideas into life-changing medicines? Then join Discovery Sciences at AstraZeneca and unlock the power of what Science can do.

About AstraZeneca

AstraZeneca is a global, science-led, patient-centred biopharmaceutical company focusing on discovering, developing, and commercialising prescription medicines for some of the world's most serious diseases. We're dedicated to being a Great Place to Work, empowering employees to push the boundaries of science and fuel their entrepreneurial spirit.

About Being a Postdoc at AstraZeneca

Our Postdocs are respected as specialists, encouraged to speak up, and supported to share their research at conferences, publish papers, and achieve their goals. This is an opportunity to make a meaningful impact with significant ownership and accountability whilst making a difference to patients' lives.

This is a 3-year programme, with an initial 2-year period and a 1-year merit-based extension.

The Opportunity

In this role, you'll research and develop novel halogenase biocatalysts discovered from extreme marine environments for sustainable pharmaceutical synthesis. Halogenases are increasingly valuable in drug discovery due to their ability to regioselectively introduce halogen atoms into organic molecules, modulating bioactivity, stability, lipophilicity, and membrane permeability of drug candidates.

The project is supported by the iLAB in the Compound Synthesis and Management team at AstraZeneca, which uses automation, miniaturisation, and high-throughput experimentation to deliver small molecule libraries and modified hit compounds across all therapeutic areas. It forms part of the EU Horizon funded NextMARINE consortium, working with European industrial and academic partners to pioneer enzyme discovery in extreme marine environments and unlock the biocatalytic potential of marine biodiversity.

You will employ cutting-edge bioinformatics to mine metagenomic sequence data, identifying promising halogenase candidates. You will then express, purify, and biochemically characterise these enzymes, evaluating their potential for regioselective halogenation relevant to pharmaceutical synthesis. You'll develop and optimise screening assays using analytical chemistry techniques to assess enzymatic activity and synthetic utility.

Supervised by Prof Martin Hayes (Biocatalysis Lead, iLAB) and Dr Giulia Bergonzini (Head of Compound Synthesis, Discovery Sciences) at AstraZeneca, with academic mentorship from Prof Ioannis Pavlidis (Department of Chemistry, University of Crete).

Key Duties & Responsibilities

• Bioinformatics mining: Discover novel halogenases from marine metagenomic databases using tools such as cdhit, mmseqs2, Clustal Omega, and MUSCLE
• Molecular biology: Design and implement strategies for heterologous expression of halogenase genes; purify and characterise recombinant enzymes
• Assay development: Develop and optimise enzymatic activity assays using LC-MS and other analytical methods
• Screening: Evaluate halogenases (WT and variants) for catalytic activity, substrate specificity, and synthetic potential in pharmaceutical-relevant transformations
• Collaboration: Work with computational biologists, enzymologists, and synthetic chemists across the NextMARINE consortium
• Dissemination: Plan, write, publish, and present high-quality scientific papers at international conferences
• Engagement: Participate in department activities, learn about drug discovery processes, and gain exposure to new scientific advances

Essential Requirements

• PhD in biochemistry, molecular biology, bioinformatics, biotechnology, organic chemistry, or a related discipline
• Demonstrated expertise in bioinformatics and computational analysis of metagenomic sequence data
• Strong molecular biology skills, including gene cloning, protein expression, and purification
• Hands-on experience with in vitro protein expression systems (bacterial, yeast, or cell-free)
• Proficiency in analytical chemistry techniques, particularly LC-MS
• Experience designing and conducting enzyme activity assays

Candidates must be within 5 years of obtaining their doctoral degree (PhD already awarded), or graduate students who will obtain their PhD within 6 months of joining AstraZeneca. A good publication record is expected.

Desirable Requirements

• Biocatalysis and/or enzyme engineering experience
• Experience with halogenase enzymes or other biocatalysts for organic synthesis
• Familiarity with marine microbiology or extremophile biology
• Knowledge of high-throughput screening and automation
• Experience with structural biology techniques (crystallography, cryo-EM, or molecular modelling)
• Understanding of pharmaceutical chemistry and drug discovery processes
• Excellent communication, planning, and organisational skills
• Ability to work in a multidisciplinary research environment

Why AstraZeneca?

You'll be part of the NextMARINE consortium, collaborating with leading partners across Europe. This unique opportunity combines fundamental research with direct pharmaceutical applications. You'll have access to world-class bioinformatics infrastructure, automated screening platforms, and advanced analytical instrumentation, alongside experts in biocatalysis, synthetic chemistry, computational biology, and drug discovery.

The unique positioning of this postdoc within AstraZeneca means access to large datasets not available in the public domain, and the opportunity to work alongside medicinal chemists who understand real synthetic challenges. Methods you develop will be published and used in real-life projects, directly impacting patients' lives.

On-Site Working: This position is based at our research site in Gothenburg, Sweden.

Next Steps

This advert will run from May 13th, 2026 and we welcome your application ahead of the closing date of May 27th, 2026. We reserve the right to close the vacancy earlier if suitable candidates are identified.