C4X Discovery Ltd - BBSRC - PIPS Placement PhD Student Internship (Chemistry)

The Company
C4X Discovery is a virtual biotech company based in central Manchester (with a second office in central London). We are a pioneering Drug Discovery company, combining scientific expertise with cutting-edge technologies to efficiently deliver world‑leading medicines. We have a highly valuable and differentiated approach to Drug Discovery through our enhanced molecular design (Conformetrix) and patient stratification (PatientSeek) capabilities, generating small molecule drug candidates across multiple disease indications focused on immuno-inflammation. We are advancing our internal portfolio which ranges from early-stage target opportunities to late-stage Drug Discovery programmes and we have two commercially partnered programmes with Sanofi and AstraZeneca. PatientSeek is a human genetics analysis platform that utilises a unique mathematical approach to enable the discovery of targets that cause disease and identify genetically-defined patient subgroups. This provides the best starting point for drug discovery, biomarker identification and patient stratification for the treatment of a variety of diseases. "Conformetrix" determines the 3D shape of drug molecules from experimental in vitro data that enables the rapid design and discovery of novel and potent drugs for immuno-inflammatory diseases with high unmet medical need.

The Company was founded in 2008 as a spin-out from the University of Manchester and has a highly experienced management team and Board who have delivered significant value creation within the healthcare sector historically.

Lead Contact
Dr Ana Manso Jones,
Associate Director of Project & Portfolio Management
ana.mansojones@c4xdiscovery.com
020 3198 0027

Project Outline
“Drug target reviews: learn how to select the next generation targets for curing intractable diseases“ In this project, you will make a vital contribution to real-world drug discovery programs at their initiation, helping us to decide which targets to pursue next in our pipeline. The key aim of the project is to undertake reviews of potential drug discovery targets identified from analysis of published literature. You will assess the available chemistry landscape and help to develop design hypotheses by reviewing and evaluating publicly available information in scientific journals and patents, and by working with experts in Medicinal Chemistry, Structural Analysis and Synthetic Chemistry. You will be exposed to Medicinal Chemistry across a broad range of target and disease classes within the immune-inflammation field and will be expected to regularly present your findings in both written reports and slide presentations. This is an exciting opportunity to be trained in how to conduct Medicinal Chemistry reviews in the pharmaceutical industry and how to apply that to design in early drug discovery projects – key skills sought after in today’s competitive life-sciences workplace.

Essential Skills
Sound knowledge of chemistry with a sandwich year in Industry or similar relevant experience Good verbal and written communication skills Computer literate - comfortable with word-processing, powerpoint etc. Organisational skills Hard-working & goal-oriented High level of attention to detail

Skills Developed
Drug-discovery chemistry evaluation
Conformational and Medicinal Chemistry design
Project planning
Cross-functional team working (Biology, Bioinformatics, Genetics, Chemistry and Commercial)
Data analysis and evaluation
Report writing and presentation skills
How to conduct target reviews How to select the best targets for drug discovery
Commercial analysis of potential new projects and competitors’ landscape

Number of Placements Offered
1

Possible Timeframe
Mid September to mid December but we can be flexible with the dates and are interested in students all year around.

Application Process
Please send us your CV and a cover letter presenting yourself and why you think you are a good fit for this internship position and what are your expectations about it.

Next round of interviews should happen around June 2024, in our Manchester office, for an ideal start date in mid September.

For any queries, please contact ana.mansojones@c4xdiscovery.com