The  Department of Nutritional Sciences explores the relationship between diet, health and disease from molecules to populations. Based at King’s Waterloo Campus, the Department of Nutritional Sciences combines over 60 basic and applied scientists, dietitians, nutritionists, doctors and public health experts. Our mission is to find new ways to improve health and to prevent and treat nutrition-related disease. 

 

We began in 1953 as the first university department of nutrition in Europe and have been at the forefront of research in nutrition science and dietetics ever since. We have developed new food applications to impact blood glucose control, collected big data through citizen science to understand individual responses to food, pioneered the low FODMAP diet as a treatment for IBS, and are developing new cereal processing techniques to unlock the natural iron and zinc in staple foods.

 

Our Department is based in the  School of Life Course & Population Sciences, of six Schools that make up the Faculty of Life Sciences & Medicine at King’s College London. The School unites over 400 experts in women and children’s health, nutritional sciences, population health and the molecular genetics of human disease. Our research links the causes of common health problems to life’s landmark stages, treating life, disease and healthcare as a continuum. We are interdisciplinary by nature and this innovative approach has contributed to our research success. In REF 2021, the Department and School were returned under Unit of Assessment 3 (Allied Health Professions, Dentistry, Nursing and Pharmacy) where 70% of research was 4* (world-leading) and 95% of research was 4* and 3* (world-leading or internationally excellent), and importantly, 100% of the research environment was rated 4* (world-leading). This resulted in the highest ranking in the UK for UoA3 for research, research output, research GPA and research power. 

 

We use this expertise to teach the next generation of health professionals and research scientists. Based across King’s Denmark Hill, Guy’s, St Thomas’ and Waterloo campuses, our academic programme of teaching, research and clinical practice is embedded across five Departments. 

We are looking to recruit a Postdoctoral Research Associate with a PhD in Nutrition, Analytical Chemistry  Food Chemistry or related topics. The post will offer leadership on a large multi-centre BBSRC-funded project investigating the effects of food processing, food matrix, and inter-individual variability on the bioaccessibility, bioavailability, and vascular effects of dietary (poly)phenols. The postdoctoral researcher will lead LC–MS–based targeted and untargeted metabolomic analyses of (poly)phenols and their host- and microbiota-derived metabolites in foods and biological samples, with involvement in human intervention studies as well as in vitro and ex vivo digestion models.

 

It is a rare and incredibly exciting opportunity to work across the research spectrum at a centre of excellence for diet and health research. Furthermore, through this post, the successful individual will be able to establish themselves as a leader in nutritional metabolomics. There will be extensive opportunity for publications and developing independence and new skills in research, including supporting the postholder to apply for research grants.

 

The post holder will lead on the project on a day-to-day basis. with a key role including leadership in developing and refining methodologies for the analysis of food and biological samples, processing and analysing laboratory samples, and contributing to conducting in vitro and ex vivo gut models as well as a human intervention study.  They will also be involved in data analysis and dissemination, including manuscript preparation, and co-ordination of correspondence with funders and collaborators.

 

This is a full-time post (35 hours per week) and you will be offered a fixed term contract until 30/04/2030.

 

It requires working on-site at King’s College London campus in Waterloo.