Research Assistant​/Associate in Interferonopathy

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Requisition

Location:

Newcastle, GB

Contract Type:
Fixed Term

Working Pattern:
Full Time

Posted Date: 25 Sept 2026

Research Associate: £36,636 per annum

Newcastle University is a great place to work, with excellent benefits . We have a generous holiday package; plus the opportunity to buy more, great pension schemes and a number of health and wellbeing initiatives to support you.

Closing Date: 09 October 2026

An exciting opportunity arises to contribute to excellent translational immunology research in a superb academic setting. You will join a thriving, internationally recognised team focused on decoding disease mechanism in inborn errors of immunity, led by Prof Sophie Hambleton and Dr Chris Duncan. We share bespoke lab space with a diverse community of researchers in the Immunity and Inflammation Theme, housed in the Leech Building at the heart of Newcastle’s Medical School.

In this project, funded by MRC, we are investigating what cell types are responsible for a devastating neuroinflammatory disease mediated by type I interferon (IFN). Our earlier discovery of a novel inborn error of STAT2’s negative feedback upon IFN signalling has led to a mouse model that faithfully recapitulates human disease. This project explores the cellular drivers of this IFN‑mediated neuropathology using conditional in vivo expression of the pathogenic allele in individual cell types, allied with human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) models of the corresponding cell types in vitro.

We will also assess novel IFN‑I inhibitors developed in partnership with medicinal chemistry collaborators. This project will shed light on direct and indirect pathogenic properties of IFN‑I in the CNS, providing a framework for interpreting pathomechanism in neurological disease.

Your role will be integral to the team delivering this research and will call upon core skills such as tissue culture, qRT‑PCR, immunofluorescence microscopy, and immunoblotting. The project provides opportunities for additional training and experience in the use of hiPSC‑derived in vitro models, live cell imaging as well as mouse husbandry. We follow the Researcher Development Concordat:
Researcher Development | Our Research | Newcastle University . We enable all colleagues to fulfil their research potential regardless of career stage. This commitment secures our thriving research culture and a vibrant research environment. Our offer to each individual includes mentoring, annual researcher development discussions, pooled funding to support career development, and peer review support for the development of research and innovation funding applications.

We are keen to hear from those with a passion for translational science and the ability to interact and engage with specialists from diverse perspectives. The present post is funded until October 2027.

As part of our commitment to career development for research colleagues, the University has developed 3 levels of Research Innovation Role  . These profiles set out firstly the generic competencies and responsibilities expected of role holders at each level and, secondly, the general qualifications and experiences needed for entry at a particular level.

Find out more about our Research Institutes here:

• Collect, analyse and interpret research data and draw conclusions on the outcomes
• Co-ordinate own work with that of others, use problem solving to affect the achievement of research objectives and contribute to the planning of the project(s)
• Present information on research progress and outcomes to a Principal Investigator or groups overseeing the research project
• Write up results from own research activity…