Research Fellow in CAR-T Analytics

What we offer

As well as the exciting opportunities this role presents, we also offer some great benefits some of which are below:

• 41 Days holiday (27 days annual leave 8 bank holiday and 6 closure days)

• Additional 5 days' annual leave purchase scheme

• Defined benefit career average revalued earnings pension scheme (CARE)

• Cycle to work scheme and season ticket loan

• Immigration loan

• Relocation scheme for certain posts

• On-Site nursery

• On-site gym

• Enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption pay

• Employee assistance programme: Staff Support Service

• Discounted medical insurance

Visit https://www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/reward-and-benefits to find out more.

About us

The UCL Division of Surgery and Interventional Science is a collaborative and cross-disciplinary environment where clinicians, engineers, allied health professionals and researchers are constantly striving for innovative approaches to treatment. This includes developing highly effective methods which go beyond the boundaries of conventional wisdom and treating each patient as an individual. As a world leader in medical and biomedical research we can see at first-hand the directions in which medicine and science are moving and where patient and industry needs are growing. This knowledge ensures that we are producing and teaching some of the most innovative master's courses for clinicians and scientists across the world. Additionally, our cutting-edge research expertise ensures that the latest techniques are taught using the most advanced equipment. Finally, we offer innovative master's courses led by world leading experts, providing a truly research-based learning experience delivered by some of the greatest minds in science and medicine today.

The Division reaching across three London campuses (Bloomsbury, Royal Free and Stanmore) brings together three major research departments: Targeted Intervention, Surgical Biotechnology and Orthopaedics and Musculoskeletal Science. Within these departments are world class research centres, specialising in many different surgical and interventional specialties. The Division also offers teaching and training in a wide range of subjects with intercalated BSc options for UCL medical students, direct MBBS teaching, undergraduate and postgraduate taught and research programmes for both clinicians and non-clinicians.

The Division holds a silver award for the Athena Swan Charter which recognizes advancement of gender equality and aims for representation, progression, and success for all. Further information on the Division can be found at https://www.ucl.ac.uk/surgery/

About the role

You will be employed on a Versus Arthritis Translational Award led by Professor John Counsell, developing in vivo CAR-T cell therapy for lupus and inflammatory arthritis using novel UCL lentiviral vector technologies, including targeted envelopes, and proprietary expression backbones. You will lead the in vivo preclinical work package, in which T cell-targeted vectors are administered intravenously to PBMC-humanised NSG mice to generate CD19 CAR-T cells directly within the animal. You will compare targeting envelopes and vector backbones for CAR-T generation efficiency, persistence, biodistribution and CD19+ target cell elimination.

The post is funded from 1 November 2026 to 31 October 2027 at Grade 7, spine point 32. You will work closely with the Research Fellow leading vector development and ex vivo human cell validation, and with clinical collaborators in UCLH Rheumatology.

Other

• The advert will close on 4th November at 23:59 GMT, however we may close applications early if we receive a high volume of applications. Early application submission is recommended.

• Interview Date(s) TBC

• If you have any queries about the role, please contact Professor John Counsell on j.counsell@ucl.ac.uk

• If you need reasonable adjustments or a more accessible format to apply for this job online or have any queries about the application process, please contact the HR Team on l.oppong@ucl.ac.uk

• The UCL Ways of Working supports colleagues to be successful and happy at UCL through sharing expectations around how we work - please visit www.ucl.ac.uk/ways-of-working to find out more.

Closing an advert early: In the event we get a high number of applications, we may close the advert early before the published closing date. As a minimum we will keep all adverts open for 2 weeks.

About you

The postholder must have a PhD (awarded, or submitted/near completion) in molecular biology, bioengineering, gene therapy or a closely related discipline.

Hands-on experience of lentiviral vector engineering, production, purification and titration.

Experience of vector retargeting, including engineering of envelope glycoproteins and pseudotyping.

Experience of CAR potency assays (antigen-specific cytotoxicity/killing assays, cytokine release).

Publications and/or conference presentations in gene therapy, vector engineering or immunotherapy would be advantageous.

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

As London's Global University, we know diversity fosters creativity and innovation, and we want our community to represent the diversity of the world's talent. We are committed to equality of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where we all belong. We therefore particularly encourage applications from candidates who are likely to be underrepresented in UCL's workforce.

These include people from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds; disabled people; LGBTQI+ people; and for our Grade 9 and 10 roles, women. Our department holds an Athena SWAN Silver award, in recognition of our commitment and demonstrable impact in advancing gender equality.