Laboratory Technician - Plant Biology Institute

Join us at EIT

At the Ellison Institute of Technology (EIT), we're on a mission to translate scientific discovery into real‑world impact. We bring together visionary scientists, technologists, engineers, researchers, educators and innovators to tackle humanity's greatest challenges in four transformative areas:

• Health, Medical Science & Generative Biology
• Food Security & Sustainable Agriculture
• Climate Change & Managing CO’2
• Artificial Intelligence & Robotics

This is ambitious work that demands curiosity, courage and a relentless drive to make a difference. At EIT, you will join a community built on excellence, innovation, tenacity, trust and collaboration, where bold ideas become real‑world breakthroughs. Together, we push boundaries, embrace complexity and create solutions to scale ideas from lab to society.

The Plant Biology Institute, headed by Professor Steve Kelly, is a key part of EIT Oxford. The institute aims to develop impactful and commercially sustainable solutions for improving global food production and planetary health through pioneering plant science research.

Our research focuses on enhancing our ability to feed the planet while simultaneously improving the climate and ecosystem outcomes of food production. By embedding cutting‑edge plant science research within an organisation that is focused on solving global challenges at scale, we aim to accelerate the timeline from discovery to global impact.

• Improved plant productivity, both indoors and outside
• Reduced reliance on inputs including water, fertilisers, pesticides and herbicides
• Novel decarbonised plant‑based production platforms for food and medicines
• Advanced technologies that speed up discovery and deployment in plants

Researchers will have access to state‑of‑the‑art laboratories and plant growth facilities and opportunities to collaborate with experts at the forefront of AI, automation and generative biology across the EIT ecosystem. They will also work with global leaders in market development, commercialisation and impact creation. The Plant Biology Institute has long‑term substantial funding to support the unique scale and ambition of its vision.

The Ellison Institute of Technology (EIT) is seeking a detail‑oriented and proactive Laboratory Technician to provide essential laboratory and experimental support within its innovative Plant Sciences research programmes.

This role involves hands‑on responsibility for cultivating experimental plants, preparing reagents and supporting a range of molecular biology, tissue culture and microbial techniques. The successful candidate will assist with data collection, maintain accurate records and uphold rigorous laboratory safety and maintenance standards. With responsibilities spanning inventory management, equipment upkeep and sample handling, this position is integral to the smooth operation of research workflows and the delivery of high‑quality scientific outcomes.

• Grow and maintain experimental plants under controlled conditions (growth chambers)
• Prepare reagents, buffers and transformation constructs as required
• Support Agrobacterium‑mediated transformation
• Prepare plant and microbial samples, including culture media, inoculations, antibiotics and controlled environment set‑ups
• Support biochemical analyses, including protein extraction and purification, protein quantification, SDS‑PAGE, immunodetection techniques (e.g. Western Blot) and plate‑reader assays
• Maintain and propagate tissue culture materials under sterile conditions; assist in the transformation of plant tissues
• Assist in the culture and maintenance of plant or microbial cells in a variety of systems; support upstream and downstream processing steps including inoculation, growth monitoring and harvesting of cultures, genotyping, metabolic analysis, sampling, extraction and preparation for analysis
• Execute routine molecular biology workflows to support genetic characterization of plant and microbial strains
• Prepare sterile media and maintain aseptic conditions for cell‑based cultures; operate and monitor small‑scale bioreactors or fermenters