Laboratory Technician - Plant Cell Culture Plant Biology Institute England, United Kingdom

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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 CO₂
• Artificial Intelligence & Robotics

This is ambitious work - work that demands curiosity, courage, and a relentless drive to make a difference. At EIT, you’ll 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. Explore more .org.

The Plant Biology Institute, headed by Professor Steve Kelly, is a key part of the Ellison Institute of Technology (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.

The Plant Biology Institute will unite world-class researchers who are focused on expanding the frontiers of plant science. Our research is focused 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.

Areas of exploration include:

• 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 laboratory and plant growth facilities and have opportunities to collaborate with experts at the forefront of research on 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.

EIT is seeking a detail-oriented and proactive Laboratory Technician – Plant Cell Culture to provide hands‑on laboratory and experimental work in plant tissue and cell culture within the Plant Biology Institute’s (PBI) cell‑based production research programme and, where prioritised, wider PBI research projects.

This role involves hands‑on responsibility for supporting and executing plant tissue and cell culture experiments and workflows planned by the Plant Cell Culture Lead. Activities may include culture initiation, maintenance and subculturing, preparation of media and reagents, sterile handling, sampling, basic characterisation, and support for method development, optimisation and downstream analysis. The successful candidate will assist with data collection, maintain accurate and traceable records, and uphold rigorous aseptic, laboratory safety and maintenance standards within the tissue culture laboratory.

With responsibilities spanning inventory management, equipment upkeep, sample handling and communication of observations and results, this position is integral to the smooth operation of cell‑based research workflows and the delivery of high‑quality scientific outcomes. Ideal candidates will bring technical competence, strong organisational skills, and a collaborative mindset to support breakthrough research aligned with EIT's mission.

The successful candidate will work within the Cell‑based Production team and collaborate with other PBI researchers, helping to maintain a safe, organised and efficient laboratory environment while supporting multiple concurrent research activities.

• Support and execute plant tissue and cell culture experiments and…