PostDoctoral Researcher in Yeast Biotechnology (27235)

   →  Apply before 13/07/2024 (DD/MM/YYYY) 23:59 (Brussels Time)
   →  Faculty of Bioscience Engineering  
   →  Department: BW25 - Biotechnologie
   →  Occupancy rate: 100%
   →  Number of positions: 1    
   →  Type of employment: Contract of unlimited duration with clause 
   →  Term of assignment: Initial contract of one year, extended upon positive evaluation 
   →  Wage scale:  PD1 to PD4 (doctoral degree) 
   →  Required diploma: PhD 

ABOUT GHENT UNIVERSITY

Ghent University is a world of its own. Employing more than 15,000 people, it is actively involved in education and research, management and administration, as well as technical and social service provision on a daily basis. It is one of the largest, most exciting employers in the area and offers great career opportunities. With its 11 faculties and more than 80 departments offering state-of-the-art study programmes grounded in research in a wide range of academic fields, Ghent University is a logical choice for its staff and students.

JOB DESCRIPTION

BioPort is a young and dynamic research group composed of 6 researchers at the Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Centre for Synthetic Biology of Ghent University focussing on several aspects of  Industrial Biotechnology and SynBio. We work on several fundamental and applied topics of microbial transport systems to promote compound membrane crossing, and production of hydrophobic compounds, all in a synthetic biology context (check our website at https://csb-bioport.mystrikingly.com/ and www.csb.ugent.be). You will be hired on the FWO-WEAVE project “Study and engineering of C1 TRansport over Yeast membranes: towards carbon-neutral microbial cell factories (CiTrY)” where you will take the lead in the transporter protein discovery and engineering and coordinate the collaboration with the Austrian project partner.

Below the abstract of the CiTrY project you will be working on:

Microbial cell factories like specialized bacteria, yeast and fungi, are used to produce relevant compounds and engineered biomolecules such as commodities, fine chemicals, food ingredients and biopharmaceuticals. Tailor-made robust microorganisms displaying novel biological behaviors produce these products in a non-chemical way utilizing nature’s toolset, in general using renewable inputs such as glucose or industrial side streams.

C1 feedstocks, such as methane, methanol, formate, CO2 and CO, have important advantages over traditional organic carbon sources like glucose. They are cheap, can be obtained from CO2 in a renewable way, do not compete as food or animal feed and do not require extensive pre-processing from complex agricultural side-streams. Implementing C1 substrates in microbial cell factories would ensure a circular carbon economy that is inherently sustainable. However, due to the relative novelty of this approach, further work will be required to have abiotic C1 substrates compete with biological feedstocks. The CiTrY project will contribute to this goal by investigating and improving transport mechanisms of the C1 substrates over outer and organelle membranes of the microbial cell factories. Underexplored proteins and proteins families will be investigated, advanced protein engineering strategies and high-throughput screening will be conducted, and a novel organelle membrane targeting approach will be developed.

• At least 70% of your assignment will be spent on academic research.
• Other tasks include the guiding and coaching of PhD students, coordination and communication in relation to the CiTrY project, small tasks to support education, grant writing, etc.

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR

1. You hold a thesis-based doctorate in Bioscience Engineering, Biochemistry, Metabolic engineering, Applied Microbiology, Microbial Biotechnology or other relevant to this application. This doctorate is obtained after August 1st 2018. This term of 6 years is determined by the date written on the above-mentioned required diploma.
2. Experience with molecular biology, microbiology and advanced yeast strain engineering is essential.
3. Experience with Komagataella phaffii (Pichia pastoris) production is strongly recommended.
4. Experience with industrial biotechnology, synthetic biology, adaptive evolution or fermentation technology is a plus.
5. Experience with transporter proteins and their engineering is a plus.
6. Being fluent in English is essential, knowledge of Dutch is a plus.
7. You proved to have scientific maturity and independence, and can think out of the box
8. You can function in a project with tight deadlines where you have to interact with others at different scientific levels.
9. You keep overview are good in coordination and can communicate and collaborate with partners and stakeholders with different backgrounds.

 WHAT WE CAN OFFER YOU

• We offer you a contract of indefinite duration with a maximum term of 2 years and 4 months. Initially there will be a contract of one year, that will be extended upon positive evaluation. 
• Your contract will start on 1/08/2024 at the earliest.
• Your remuneration will be determined by salary scale PD1. Click here for more information about our salary scales.
• All Ghent University staff members enjoy a number of benefits, such as a wide range of training and education opportunities, 36 days of holiday leave (on an annual basis for a full-time job) supplemented by annual fixed bridge days, a bicycle allowance and eco vouchers.. Click here for a complete overview of all the staffbenefits (in Dutch).

INTERESTED?

Apply online through the e-recruitment system before the application deadline (see above). We do not accept late applications or applications that are not submitted through the online system.

Your application must include the following documents:

• In the field ‘CV’: your CV and an overview of your study results (merged into one pdf file)
• In the field ‘Cover letter’: your application letter in pdf format. Please address all nine points mentioned under the job profile in your cover letter.
• In the field ‘Diploma’: a transcript of the required degree (if already in your possession). If you have a foreign diploma in a language other than our national languages (Dutch, French or German) or English, please add a translation in one of the mentioned languages.
• In the field “other documents”: a list with the contact details of two references, a one-page abstract of your doctoral thesis, optional: reference letter(s)

Note that the maximum file size for each field is 10 MB.

As Ghent University maintains an equal opportunities and diversity policy, everyone is encouraged to apply for this position.

MORE INFORMATION

For more information about this vacancy, please contact Prof. Inge Van Bogaert (Inge.VanBogaert@UGent.be, +32(0)9/264 60 34). Important: do NOT send your application by email, but apply online.

Do you have a question regarding the online application process? Please read our FAQ or contact helpdesk (dpo@ugent.be - tel. 09/264 98 98).