Research Assistant (lab manager): SARS-CoV-2 transcription

Key words: RNA, transcription, SARS-CoV-2, COVID19, protein purification, in vitro assays

The successful applicant will carry over duty of Lab Manager, perform established assays and protocols, protein purification and cell culturing. The IBB PAS gives opportunity to enter a PhD track for Research Assistants.

The laboratory headed by Dr. Tomasz Turowski is looking for a research assistant (lab manager). You will join the project entitled “Functional framework for viral RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, a major target in COVID19 treatment” funded by the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange grant PPN/PPO/2020/2/00004.

Our laboratory is interested how the biophysics of transcription affects gene regulation and our goal is to apply this knowledge to increase our understanding of SARS-CoV-2 transcription to study viral adaptation and the mechanism of drugs inhibition.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a positive strand RNA virus, in which the infecting RNA serves both as mRNA and genome. An RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRP) both transcribes the genes and replicates the genome, making RdRP a major target in COVID19 therapy. Nucleotide analogues, including the drugs remdesivir and sofosbuvir, inhibit RNA synthesis by RdRP, but therapy could be enhanced by better understanding of key features of RdRP function.

To define key elements in SARS-CoV-2 transcription regulation, we will apply the combination of approaches developed in our previous studies: in vivo biology, biochemistry, bioinformatics and mathematical modelling. We aim to map RdRP and validate our findings using in vitro methods and compared with phylogenetic analysis. The data will be integrated into a mathematical model of SARS-CoV-2 transcription. We aim to identify sequences and mechanisms important for SARS-CoV-2 transcription than can be used as a targets in the therapies.