Doctoral researcher, protein-nucleic acid hybrid materials

Aalto University is where science and art meet technology and business. We shape a sustainable future by making research breakthroughs in and across our disciplines, sparking the game changers of tomorrow and creating novel solutions to major global challenges. Our community is made up of 16 000 students and more than 5 000 employees, including more than 400 professors. Our campus is in Espoo, Greater Helsinki, Finland. Diversity is part of who we are, and we actively work to ensure our community's diversity and inclusiveness. This is why we warmly encourage qualified candidates from all backgrounds to join our community.

The School of Chemical Engineering is one of the six schools of Aalto University. It combines natural sciences and engineering in a unique way.

We are now looking for a

Doctoral researcher in the field of protein-nucleic acid hybrid materials

We are seeking a doctoral researcher to join a Research Council of Finland-funded project (https://research.fi/en/results/funding/88763) focused on developing programmable protein-nucleic acid hybrid materials for RNA delivery. RNA therapeutics, including mRNA vaccines and gene therapies, require delivery systems that protect nucleic acids and enable efficient intracellular release. This project combines DNA origami nanostructures with viral capsid proteins to investigate how capsid protein properties influence the assembly, stability, and function of protein-coated nanostructures. A central objective is to establish a systematic structure-function map linking capsid protein characteristics, such as structural architecture, oligomerisation behaviour, and charge distribution, to coating morphology, stability, and RNA delivery performance. The resulting framework will provide broadly applicable design rules for protein-nucleic acid hybrid materials and future RNA delivery technologies.

Scientific environment

The position is under the supervision of the Principal Investigator, Dr Donna McNeale, and is e