Postdoctoral researcher enzyme characterization and enzyme engineering

Postdoctoral researcher on enzyme characterization and enzyme engineering

Leiden University was founded in 1575 and is one of Europe’s leading international research universities.

Applying is possible until: 5 februari 2026

We are hiring a postdoctoral scientist to join our EU‑funded team on genetic engineering of bacteria to generate sustainable cell factories. The project aims to develop a high‑efficiency technology that converts single‑carbon feed stocks directly into valuable chemicals. Scientists with expertise in metabolic engineering, enzyme engineering, computational modelling, and process optimisation will work together. By combining microbial strains with synthetic metabolism with engineered enzymes and efficient pathways for substrate assimilation, the project promises a simplified and sustainable method for converting single‑carbon feed stocks into multi‑carbon compounds.

This postdoc position will focus on characterising and engineering enzymes for the efficient conversion of single‑carbon feed stocks. The scientist will perform biochemical characterisation of naturally occurring enzymes and improve their properties via enzyme engineering, based on diverse approaches including structure‑based mutagenesis, growth‑coupled selection, and directed evolution. This will be done in collaboration with several different partner institutions across Europe. The scientist will be involved in an interdisciplinary, innovative synthetic biology project in a productive scientific environment.

• A PhD degree in biochemistry, biotechnology, synthetic biology, microbiology, or a related discipline
• Practical experience with heterologous protein production, purification, and characterisation via spectrophotometric or LC‑MS‑based assays
• Background in enzyme engineering via targeted or random mutagenesis, high‑throughput screening of sequence libraries, directed evolution, or growth coupling
• Expertise in enzyme structure analysis via crystallography or cryo‑EM techniques is advantageous
• Interest in metabolic engineering and synthetic biology
• Ability to work in a highly collaborative international project and able to undertake international travel

Curiosity and passion for science are what connect our people: the desire to know, understand, interpret, explain and create. Our mission is to provide excellent teaching and research across the full breadth of the sciences, contributing to solutions for major societal challenges. Our eight institutes, ranging from mathematics, computer science, astronomy, physics, chemistry, and biopharmaceutical sciences to biology and environmental sciences, along with the Lorentz Center and the Hortus botanicus, form the backbone of our faculty and have a strong mutual interconnectedness.

We work in a safe, stimulating and international environment where people work and study with pleasure and passion, and where building connections and collaboration, both within and beyond the faculty, are a clear choice. The faculty has over 2,700 staff members and more than 6,000 students enrolled in nine bachelor's and fifteen master's programmes. We are located in the heart of the Bio Science Park, one of Europe’s largest science parks, where academia and industry meet.

Research at the Institute of Biology Leiden (IBL) aims to contribute to the scientific foundation of biodiversity and health. This is reflected in our guiding principle:
Harnessing Biodiversity for Health. We conduct innovative research to answer fundamental questions as well as solution-driven research to address major societal challenges, such as protecting natural biodiversity, developing sustainable biotechnology and agriculture, and improving human health. Our research focuses on four themes:
Bioactive Molecules, Host‑Microbe Interactions, Development & Disease, and Evolution & Biodiversity. Situated in a dynamic scientific environment alongside the Faculty of Science, Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden University Medical Center, and the Leiden Bio Science Park, IBL offers an engaging, internationally oriented, and inclusive place to work and study.

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