Postdoctoral Fellowships in Contraceptive Drug Discovery (Biochemistry, Chemical Biology, Structural Biology, Pharmacology) University Health Network in Canada

The Structural Genomics Consortium (SGC), a public-private partnership dedicated to accelerating drug discovery through open access research, is offering postdoctoral fellowships as part of the Target 2035 program at the University Health Network in Toronto, Canada. These positions focus on open drug-discovery projects aimed at developing next-generation contraceptive small molecules. Fellows will work on discovering, validating, and chemically modulating novel protein targets with sperm-specific expression, contributing to non-hormonal contraception strategies.

Supervised by Prof. Rachel Harding, the fellows will advance assigned protein targets through the drug discovery pipeline, from initial hit identification to chemical probe development. The research involves protein expression and purification, biochemical and biophysical characterization, and high-resolution structure determination using techniques such as X-ray crystallography and cryo-EM. Fellows will also assess target ligandability and develop high-throughput screening strategies, collaborating with medicinal chemists, machine learning scientists, and other interdisciplinary partners.

The program offers a unique training environment within a global open science initiative, providing access to state-of-the-art infrastructure and opportunities for high-impact collaboration at the interface of biology and chemistry. The fellowship is a full-time postdoctoral appointment for one year, renewable for up to two additional years based on performance and funding. Applicants should hold a PhD (or be near completion) in biochemistry, chemical biology, structural biology, pharmacology, or a related field, with strong experimental skills and a record of peer-reviewed publications. Enthusiasm for interdisciplinary and collaborative research is essential.

Funding is provided through the Mitacs Accelerate Umbrella program. For more information and to apply, candidates should visit the SmartRecruiters application page and review the full position description. This opportunity is ideal for researchers interested in reproductive health, drug discovery, and open science collaboration.