Seeking a Team Director (Principal Investigator, Indefinite-term) (26-344)

Laboratory

RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science

Open positions

Team Director (Principal Investigator): 1 position

Job description

RIKEN's research is based on comprehensiveness and interdisciplinarity, and with free thinking as its basic philosophy, RIKEN promotes research that goes beyond the boundaries of conventional research fields, while at the same time responding to the needs of society from a strategic perspective.

RIKEN invites applications for the position of Team Director (Principal Investigator) to serve in a leadership position in the following research area. The successful candidate will be responsible for directing research projects from a medium-to-long-term perspective.

Field: Bioactive molecule-driven life sciences

Chemical biology is an interdisciplinary field at the interface of chemistry and biology that aims to elucidate biological phenomena at the molecular level using chemical approaches, enabling the discovery of fundamental principles of life that are difficult to address through biological methods alone. The field has also contributed to society through applications in medicine and agriculture, including the development of pharmaceuticals and plant growth regulators. Bioactive molecules, including physiologically active compounds produced by living organisms as well as unnatural bioactive molecules and chemical probes designed and synthesized by humans, form a central foundation of chemical biology research. Studies based on these molecules are expected to advance our fundamental understanding of life processes and to drive broad developments across diverse scientific disciplines. The RIKEN CSRS seeks to recruit a principal investigator who will promote biology-oriented chemical biology research and contribute to strengthening and advancing the research foundation in this field. Anticipated research areas include the development of assay systems and advanced technologies for the discovery of novel bioactive molecules; elucidation of mechanisms of action through chemoproteomics and related approaches; identification and validation of target molecules and pathways via chemical genomics; and molecular studies of chemical communication between cells and across species. In addition, research is expected to translate fundamental discoveries into applications in medicine, agriculture, and material production, as well as to clarify molecular mechanisms underlying life phenomena such as epigenetic and metabolic regulation. We also welcome proactive applications from motivated researchers who are not limited to the above fields and who are eager to pioneer new areas through integration with AI, data science, and related disciplines.

Research funds including personnel expenses will be allocated to operate the laboratory. Upon appointment, start-up expenses for establishing the laboratory will be allocated.