RNA Chemistry Internship (Startup)

Summary

In collaboration with the Royal Society of Chemistry, Sixfold Bioscience is delighted to offer a promising early stage chemists a fully funded three month internship (with possibility to extend) at Sixfold’s London labs. During your time at Sixfold you’ll learn how to synthesise modified nucleic acids to create safer and more effective cancer treatments.

About us

We founded Sixfold to tackle the biggest challenge in healthcare: how to safely deliver therapeutics to diseased cells. We saw the huge potential of Cell and Gene therapies being limited to how safely and effectively they can be systemically delivered in people. Motivated by the impact our technology could make, we’ve been working hard in the lab and are now looking for scientists to help scale our preclinical research program. We’re proud of the company we’ve built and our team is Sixfold’s biggest competitive advantage. Our scientists are creative and iterate fast because they want to see what they do in the lab make a difference in the clinic. If you want to help cure the incurable, you belong with us.

The opportunity

As an Intern specialising in nucleic acid chemistry you’ll have the opportunity to radically improve how we deliver Cell and Gene therapeutics. We’ll be teaching you the fundamentals of nucleic acid chemistry, so that you’ll be able to apply your knowledge of chemistry to design and synthesize these molecules for use in our proprietary drug delivery systems.

We know this is a big challenge, which is why you’ll be working under the close supervision of our talented team of RNA and organic chemists. By working alongside our biology and computational teams, you’ll also become familiar with areas of science you might not be typically exposed to. As we work towards our common goal you’ll see how teams function as part of a rapidly growing startup.

Your work will make invaluable contributions to the scientific and strategic direction of the company, which is why we will give you all the support to help achieve your goals during your time with us.

During the internship, you’ll

• Apply nucleic acid chemistry to adapt and optimize Sixfold’s proprietary delivery systems for therapeutic cargo. This will include the synthesis of modified nucleic acids and the physicochemical analysis.
• Work in collaboration with our biology and computational teams to improve the design of our drug delivery system.
• Participate, and present, in weekly scientific presentations and bi-weekly journal clubs with the R&D team.

Who you are

You need to be passionate about utilising nucleic acids in innovative and transformative ways to cure disease. Specifically, you should be someone who is:

• Awarded with a BSc/Masters/PhD degree in Chemistry or equivalent. 
• Familiar working within a laboratory environment.
• Experience in small molecule and/or organic synthesis.

Perks

• £4,000.
• 3 month full-time position.
• Possibility to join the Sixfold permanently after your internship.

Other perks

• Working on world-changing technology with leaders in the field.
• Dynamic, innovative, passionate, entrepreneurial team.
• Inclusive company culture.
• The chance to see your ideas and research make an impact in a fast-growing start-up.
• Team-wide social events.

Logistics

• Where? Sixfold’s Labs in White City, London (Post Code: W12 0BZ)
• When? January 2020 (Flexible)
• Where can I find out more? https://www.sixfold.bio/
• Closing Date for Applications: January 2^nd 2020 (earlier applications encouraged).
• Contact details: careers@sixfold.bio