Postdoc in Synthetic Biology

14 May 2024
Job Information

Organisation/Company

Universitat Pompeu Fabra

Department

Department of Experimental and Health Sciences

Research Field

Biological sciences

Researcher Profile

First Stage Researcher (R1)

Country

Spain

Application Deadline

2 Jun 2024 - 23:59 (Europe/Madrid)

Type of Contract

Other

Job Status

Full-time

Hours Per Week

37,5

Offer Starting Date

1 Jul 2024

Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme?

H2020 / ERC

Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure?

No

Offer Description

The emerging ‘Synthetic Cell Programming’ lab, led by Dr. Santos-Moreno (santosmorenolab.org ), is seeking for a highly-motivated PhD candidate for engineering synthetic gene circuits to program time in E. coli cells. This position is funded by an ERC Starting Grant (project: TICK-TOCK Do and Die).

Past achievements of Dr. Santos-Moreno include tool development for synthetic biology, including CRISPRi-based circuits (Santos-Moreno et al. 2020, Nat Commun ) and modular cloning approaches (Santos-Moreno & Schaerli 2019, ACS Synth Biol ); the use of these tools to address longstanding biological questions, related to evolution (Santos-Moreno et al. 2023, Nat Commun ) or pathogenesis (Rueff et al. 2023, Nat Commun ); and the engineering of diverse members of the human microbiome – including gut (E. coli), lung (S. pneumoniae) and skin (C. acnes) microbes – for basic or applied research, such as the delivery of molecules with anti-acne potential by an engineered skin bacterium (Knödlseder et al. 2024, Nat Biotechnol ).

The group is part of the Medicine and Life Sciences (MELIS ) department at the University Pompeu Fabra (UPF), a high-class institution with demonstrated competitiveness. The lab is physically located at the Biomedical Research Park of Barcelona (PRBB ), a multidisciplinary bio-hub with state-of-the-art facilities hosting top-class research institutes, including the Center for Genomic Regulation (CRG), and the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), among others. The successful candidate will benefit from a stimulating and international research environment in a young and dynamic team. The host group is committed to maintaining a respectful, inclusive, and friendly working environment for all staff and students, as well as promoting personal and career development.
 

Your role:

The successful candidate will work on designing and building synthetic gene circuits to program time in cells, and on characterizing these circuits, fine-tuning them, and connecting them to other circuits / actuator modules. The candidate is also expected to write articles, present results at seminars / conferences, contribute to the training of PhD candidates and undergraduate students, collaborate with other group members and labs, and apply for postdoc fellowships. If interested, the candidate can also participate in teaching and outreach activities.

Requirements

Research Field

Biological sciences

Education Level

PhD or equivalent

Skills/Qualifications

1) A PhD in life sciences.
2) One or more 1st-author publications in major peer-reviewed international journals.
3) Experience:
     - Essential: strong background in wet-lab synthetic or molecular biology.
     - Highly desirable: experience in designing gene circuits or in modelling them.
     - Desirable: experience in bacterial cultivation, microfluidics, dynamic systems, synthetic memory, or biocontainment.
4) Competencies & skills:
     • High motivation and proactivity.
     • Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
     • Strong organizational skills.
     • Scientific integrity and rigor.
     • A good command (spoken & written) of English language.

Languages

ENGLISH

Level

Good

Research Field

Biological sciences

Additional Information
Benefits

• A full-time postdoc contract of up to 4 years.
• Competitive salary.
• 36 days/year of paid holidays: 22 days of personal choice + 14 bank holidays.
• Full access to the Spanish national social security, including free-of-charge access to the health system and unemployment and retirement contributions.
• Measures to reconcile work & family life, including parental leave and flexible working hours.
• Mentorship and training, including access to free courses and resources, to accelerate your professional development.

Additional comments

Please send your application to [email protected]  with ‘Postdoc timers’ as the subject line. Provide your ID/Passport number in the body of the email, and include all of the following in a single PDF document named as ‘Postdoc-timers_yourName_yourSurname.pdf’:

     1) Motivation letter.
     2) CV, including a publication list.
     3) Contact details of 3 references.
 

Questions?
Please contact Javier Santos-Moreno ([email protected] ) for inquires.

Website for additional job details

https://www.upf.edu/documents/2869130/286846873/J+Santos+Moreno+-+ERC+postdoc+o…

Work Location(s)

Number of offers available

1

Company/Institute

Universitat Pompeu Fabra

Country

Spain

State/Province

Barcelona

City

Barcelona

Postal Code

08003

Street

Dr. Aiguader, 88

Where to apply

E-mail

[email protected]

Contact

City

Barcelona

Website

http://www.upf.edu/biomed

Street

Dr. Aiguader, 88

Postal Code

08003

STATUS: EXPIRED