POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCHER (Antibiotic resistance genesand virus surrogates in water reuse)

2 May 2023
Job Information

Organisation/Company

Catalan Institute for Water Research (ICRA)

Research Field

Biological sciences

Researcher Profile

Recognised Researcher (R2)

Country

Spain

Application Deadline

16 May 2023 - 23:59 (Europe/Madrid)

Type of Contract

Temporary

Job Status

Full-time

Hours Per Week

40

Offer Starting Date

1 Jul 2023

Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme?

European Union / Next Generation EU

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

Yes

Offer Description

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE JOB

• Job location:  ICRA – Catalan Institute for Water Research, Girona (Spain)
• Number of positions available: 1
• Expected start: July 2023
• Temporal Position. The position is for a maximum of 17 months (project ends 30/11/2024)
• Gross Annual Salary package: 24.000 to 29.899€  (according to experience and qualifications)

​

OFFER DESCRIPTION

Research project and context: reclaimONEwater is a research project funded by the Spanish Agencia Estatal de Investigación within the call for proposals issued in 2022: Proyectos Estratégicos Orientados a la Transición Ecológica y la Transición Digital (Strategic projects oriented towards the Green and Digital Transition). The present position is one of three new staff members fully dedicated to this project. It focuses on two main topics: (i) the fate of antibiotic resistance genes in physico-chemical treatment; (ii) the use of naturally occurring phages as viral surrogates. The other two positions in the project focus on laboratory experimentation with novel treatment technology and the use of high resolution mass spectrometry as virus surrogates and regarding the potential to form disinfection byproducts in planned and de facto potable reuse. In addition to these three new staff members, the project team consists of the ICRA researchers Wolfgang Gernjak (project leader), Maria José Farré and Carles Borrego. The main supervisor of this position is Carles Borrego. The reclaimONEwater team will for de facto and planned potable reuse (i) evaluate water quality hazards caused by emerging chemical and biological contaminants; (ii) develop and showcase at pilot-scale novel monitoring methods supporting safe operation; (iii) validate on pilot-scale a novel advanced treatment based on vacuum UV radiation. It will also showcase international best-practice and extend our options to combat our water scarce future in the Mediterranean Basin. Thereby reclaimONEwater contributes importantly to achieving several goals of the Green Transition: (i) climate change adaptation; (ii) sustainable use and protection of hydric resources; (iii) transitioning towards a circular economy; and (iv) prevention and control of environmental contamination.

 

KEY DUTIES

Establish protocols for the extraction of free floating DNA to analyze ARGs with qPCR. Study the fate of ARGs across physico-chemical treatment barriers. Study the fate of naturally occurring phages across treatment barriers. Establish causal relationship between the fate of ARGs and naturally occurring phages across treatment barriers with other water quality parameters (e.g. dissolved organic matter as investigated by the other postdoctoral fellow in the project). Contribute to developing a risk-based monitoring framework in water reuse based employing novel surrogates developed in the project. The successful candidate will carry out research and contribute to the full value chain of exploitation of results, i.e. publishing results in scientific journals or in intellectual property protection measures if applicable.

Requirements

Research Field

Biological sciences

Education Level

PhD or equivalent

Skills/Qualifications

EXPERIENCE, KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS

Must have – Required

Research Field or Field of knowledge:

Microbiology, especially the field of antibiotic resistance and fate in treatment.

Qualifications and Education Level:

A PhD related to the position.

Skills:

Familiar with DNA extraction protocols and qPCR and evaluation of the data generated

Evaluating results and publish them in high quality scientific publications

Communicative and collaborative in the project team environment and beyond

Required Experience:

The minimum requirement is professional experience obtained during PhD studies in a field closed related to position.

Desirable

Experience with the extraction of free-floating DNA, including processing large sample volume.

Experience with analyzing phages.

Experience with physico-chemical water treatment processes (such as reverse osmosis membranes or advanced oxidation).

Valid driving license (type B)

Professional experience in prior appointments in an R&D context

Demonstrated track record of exploiting and disseminating research results (e.g. scientific publications, patents etc).

Additional Information
Benefits

Working conditions: Employed in compliance with Spanish legislation and regulations. Employees receive the benefits of the Spanish Social Security system covering sickness, maternity/paternity leaves and injuries at work.

International Environment: The opportunity to join a prestigious international research institution and become a member of a young and growing team.

Continuous training in a high-quality environment.

Selection process

APPLICATIONS PROCEDURE & PROCESS

All Applications must be contain:

CV

Motivation letter

DNI or NIE (valid and with work permit in Spain). If you do not have a NIE, please attach a statement that you commit to take the necessary steps to obtain a work and residence permit in Spain.

Academic Qualifications

 

Deadline for Applications:

Send the required documents to [email protected]  indicating ref. “reclaimONEwater virus surrogates and ARG” in the subject of the email.

The deadline to submit the required documentation is May 16th, 2023.

 

Selection process:

In accordance with the OTM-R principles, a gender-balanced recruitment panel is formed for every vacancy at the beginning of the process. After reviewing the content of the applications, the panel will start the interviews. A profile questionnaire as well as a technical exercise may be required during the process.

Additional comments

In ICRA we are committed to maintaining and developing a work environment in which the values and principles of our organization are respected and equal opportunities between women and men be promoted in each of the areas in which we operate, not tolerating discrimination based on criteria such age, sex, marital status, race, ethnicity, disabilities, political leanings or sexual orientation. 

Recruitment will be carried out as provided for in Article 15 of Royal Legislative Decree 1/1995 of 24 March passing the text of the Workers' Statute Act, in accordance with the provisions of Article  2 of Royal Decree 2720/98 of 18 December (B.O.E. 8 January 1999), Act nº 12/2001 of July 9 (B.O.E. 10 July) and concordant regulations.

The principle of equality between men and women is taken into account, in accordance with Article 14 of the Spanish Constitution, the EU Directive of 9 February 1976 and the provisions of the Agreement of the Council of Ministers of March 4, 2005, passing the Plan for gender equality in the General State Administration.

Universal accessibility for persons with disabilities is taken into account, in accordance with paragraph 2 of Article 1 of Act nº 51/2003 of 2 December on equal opportunities, and 5% of vacancies are reserved provided the candidates pass the selection processes and are able to accredit disability and compatibility in performing the tasks so that we will progressively reach 2% of the total workforce.

Basic information on Data Protection

Responsible: Fundació Institut Català de Recerca de l’Aigua (ICRA); Purpose: The selection of candidates for current and future jobs offered by our organization; Rights: You have the right to access, rectify and delete the data, as well as other rights indicated in the additional information; Additional information: You can consult the additional and detailed information on Data Protection on our website: http://www.icra.cat/politica-de-privacidad

Work Location(s)

Number of offers available

1

Company/Institute

Catalan Institute for Water Research (ICRA)

Country

Spain

State/Province

Girona

City

Girona

Postal Code

17003

Where to apply

E-mail

[email protected]

Contact

City

Girona

Website

https://www.icra.cat

Street

Emili Grahit 101, H2O Building, Science and Technology Park of the University of Girona

Postal Code

17003

E-Mail

[email protected]

STATUS: EXPIRED