University of Southampton: Research Fellow in Cell and Developmental Biology, Southampton, England, United Kingdom

The University of Southampton is hiring a Research Fellow in Cell and Developmental Biology in the Salah Elias laboratory at Highfield Campus, Southampton. The role requires a PhD, or being close to completing one. Closing date: Wednesday 09 December 2026.

Job Details

Organization: University of Southampton

Position: Research Fellow in Cell and Developmental Biology

Laboratory: Salah Elias laboratory

Location: Highfield Campus, Southampton, England, United Kingdom

Employment Type: Full-time, fixed-term for 36 months

Salary: £39,560 to £41,885 per annum

Reference: 3545826BJ

Closing Date: Wednesday 09 December 2026 (apply by 11.59 pm UK time)

Qualification: PhD / Doctorate in Cell Biology / Developmental Biology / Stem Cell Biology

Experience: Postdoctoral / Research Fellow (early-career; Freshers eligible as recent doctorates)

Job Description

The University of Southampton is seeking a motivated and enthusiastic Research Fellow to join the Salah Elias laboratory at the University of Southampton and lead the experimental research within a BBSRC-funded project investigating mechanisms of mammary epithelial morphogenesis through AI-integrated human organoid models and predictive cell fate mapping. This is an excellent opportunity to shape an innovative project and develop a distinctive interdisciplinary profile at the interface of cell and developmental biology, human organoid models, advanced imaging, molecular phenotyping and computational biology.

Project Details

The project combines patient-derived mammary organoids, high-resolution 3D/4D imaging, single-cell transcriptomics and AI-driven analysis and modelling to uncover mechanisms governing epithelial morphogenesis. At its core is a fundamental question: how do polarised cell divisions coordinate luminogenesis with cell fate and differentiation to build and maintain functional epithelial architecture? By addressing this question in physiologically relevant human models, the project aims to define how these mechanisms safeguard epithelial integrity and how their disruption leads to abnormal tissue organisation.

Key Responsibilities

  • Take a central role in the scientific development of this ambitious programme, including experimental design, data analysis and interpretation.
  • Use patient-derived human mammary organoids and gene loss-of-function approaches, together with high-resolution 3D/4D fluorescence imaging, fate mapping, advanced quantitative analysis, and single-cell RNA sequencing, to connect molecular and cellular mechanisms with cell fate and tissue architecture.
  • Working with computational researchers, integrate multimodal imaging and transcriptomic data into AI-driven mechanistic and predictive models to determine how changes at the level of individual cells influence tissue-level organisation and function.

Eligibility Criteria

  • A PhD, or being close to completing one, in cell biology, developmental biology, stem cell biology or a related discipline.
  • Early-career postdoctoral / research fellow level (Freshers eligible as recent doctorates).

Required Skills

  • Strong experimental experience across several relevant areas of cell and developmental biology, which may include organoids, microscopy and molecular biology.
  • Experience in advanced automated or semi-automated quantitative image analysis would be particularly advantageous but is not essential.
  • A creative and collaborative scientist with a proactive, analytical approach.

How to Apply

Apply via the University of Southampton’s official jobs vacancy (ref 3545826BJ; also listed on jobs.ac.uk). Closing date: Wednesday 09 December 2026, 11.59 pm UK time.

Additional Information

The official original notice is available at https://jobs.soton.ac.uk/Vacancy.aspx?ref=3545826BJ.

CLICK HERE FOR THE ORIGINAL NOTIFICATION / APPLY ONLINE

Apply by Wednesday 09 December 2026, 11.59 pm UK time.