Research Associate; Bioenergetics and Single-Molecule Biophysics

Research Associate (Bioenergetics and Single-Molecule Biophysics)

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Job Description

Job Title:

Research Associate (Bioenergetics and Single-Molecule Biophysics) Posting

Start Date:

07/08/2026 Job  School/Department:
Biosciences Work Arrangement:
Full Time (On site) Contract Type:
Fixed-term Salary per annum (£): £38,784. Closing Date: 06/09/2026

The University of Sheffield is a remarkable place to work. Our people are at the heart of everything we do. Their diverse backgrounds, abilities and beliefs make Sheffield a world-class university.

We offer a fantastic range of benefits including a highly competitive annual leave entitlement (with the ability to purchase more), a generous pensions scheme, flexible working opportunities, a commitment to your development and wellbeing, a wide range of retail discounts, and much more. Find out more about our benefits (opens in a new window) and join us to become part of something special.

We are seeking a talented and motivated Research Associate to join Professor Matt Johnson’s group in the School of Biosciences to investigate how bioenergetic supercomplexes promote electron transfer in respiration and photosynthesis. The role is funded by a Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) responsive mode grant for three years, commencing in October 2026.

A central puzzle in bioenergetics is why electron transfer (ET) complexes cluster into larger supercomplexes within the membranes of mitochondria, chloroplasts, and bacteria. Building on our recently developed single-molecule atomic force microscopy (smAFM) approach, this project will test the hypothesis that supercomplexes enhance ET by promoting the formation of transient encounter complexes between soluble electron carrier proteins and their cognate membrane integral complexes.

The work spans bacterial, mitochondrial, and chloroplast systems and combines smAFM with complementary biophysical methods (mass photometry, microscale thermophoresis, spectroscopy), cryo-electron microscopy, and the engineering of artificial supercomplexes via CRISPR-Cas9 in Chlamydomonas.

You will work within a vibrant research environment that includes the Imagine:
Imaging Life facility, world-class controlled environment plant and algal growth facilities, and an active community of researchers in photosynthesis, bacterial bioenergetics, and structural biology. You will also collaborate with leading international partners, providing excellent opportunities for career development.

• Design, execute, and analyse single-molecule atomic force microscopy (smAFM) experiments to quantify the binding probabilities, unbinding forces, and turnover rates of electron carrier proteins on isolated and super complex forms of bacterial, mitochondrial, and chloroplast electron transfer complexes.

• Purify membrane protein supercomplexes and their components from yeast mitochondria, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, spinach chloroplasts, and Chlamydomonas thylakoids, including via collaborations with international partners.

• Apply complementary biophysical methods, including mass photometry, microscale thermophoresis, and absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy, to characterise protein-protein interactions and electron transfer kinetics.

• Design and generate site-directed mutants of supernumerary subunits implicated in encounter complex formation and characterise their effects on binding and turnover.

• Engineer artificial supercomplexes in Chlamydomonas using CRISPR-Cas9, including the construction and validation of chimeric gene fusions and the purification biophysical and structural (Cryo-EM) characterisation of the resulting complexes.

• Liaise with collaborators conducting molecular and Brownian dynamics simulations to translate computational predictions into testable experimental hypotheses and vice versa.

• Disseminate research outputs through publications in international peer-reviewed journals, oral and poster presentations at national and international conferences, and contributions to public engagement activities.

• Cont…