Scott Churcher

PhD position working in the proteomic analysis of replisome composition during cell differentiation and malignant transformation at the group of Dr Emilio Lecona in the Genome Dynamics and Function Program, Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa (CBMSO) at the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Madrid, Spain.

What is the candidate going to do?

The candidate will purify replisomes through the iPOND technique (immunoprecipitation of nascent DNA) and compare their composition in embryonic stem cells and differentiated cells (mouse embryonic fibroblasts). The replisome composition will be studied by mass spectrometry and the results will be analyzed in a collaboration with InSyBio (Greece), a company with a great experience in the development of bioinformatics solutions in genomics and proteomics. The researcher will carry out a secondment in InSyBio to learn the computational basis of the mass spectrometry analyses to identify DNA replication factors specific to different states of differentiation. Based on these results, the candidate will study specific replication factors through their genetic manipulation to understand how they affect DNA replication dynamics and their impact in cell differentiation. These studies will be complemented by experiments with Xenopus egg extracts. In a second secondment, the researcher will visit the lab of Julien Duxin in the Center for Protein Research (Denmark) where he/she will learn how to use this system to study DNA replication. The candidate will carry out experiments to understand how specific replication factors determine different steps in DNA replication. A similar approach will be used to understand how replisome composition changes through the process of malignant transformation in vitro. Together, we expect to obtain a picture of the different replisomes that cells can use to modify DNA replication dynamics, how these changes impact chromatin and the maintenance of cell identity.

What does the candidate have to offer?

• MSc in Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and/or Biotechnology

Experience in cell culture, biochemistry, and molecular biology will be valued.

About the institution

The CBMSO is part of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and the Autonomous University of Madrid (UAM). It was funded by the Nobel prize Severo Ochoa in 1975 and since then it has hosted some of the more prominent research groups in Spain. The research in the CBMSO has a broad scope from virology to cell and developmental biology, and from immunology to neuroscience. With a strong focus on biotechnology development, the CBMSO offers a multidisciplinary environment of scientific excellence supported by the in-house facilities and the shared services in UAM and CSIC.

Any questions?

Do you have any questions or do you require additional information? Please contact: Dr Emilio Lecona; elecona@cbm.csic.es, +34 911964736.