PhD student –scholarship holder “Computer simulations of partially disordered proteins”

Job Summary:

The PhD student will use computational methods to study conformations of partially disordered proteins – both in aqueous solutions and at lipid membranes.

Job Description:

The PhD student will join the Division of Theoretical Physics at the Institute of Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences. He/she will participate in the research project entitled “Structural and functional analysis of regulation of the lipid-transport protein ORP8”, which is supported by the National Science Centre within the international CEUS-UNISONO program, and carried out in close collaboration with the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences. The biological function of oxysterol-binding protein (OSBP)-related protein 8 (ORP8) is to transport lipids from the place of their synthesis (i.e. from endoplasmic reticulum) to the plasma membrane, which contributes to maintaining the proper lipid composition of cellular membranes. The ultimate goal of the research project is to obtain a detail molecular model of lipid transport between membranes by the ORP8 protein.

The PhD student will use computational methods to study conformations of partially disordered proteins, i.e. such macromolecules that contain both folded protein domains and intrinsically disordered polypeptide segments. In particular, he/she will use coarse-grained simulations and ensemble refinement methods to integrate data from X-ray crystallography, small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) experiments to determine molecular conformations of the ORP8 protein.

Requirements:

- MSc in physics or chemistry or a related branch of science, or an equivalent degree that qualifies one for PhD studies in physics in the country of issue;

- Knowledge of statistical mechanics and/or of numerical methods in physics or chemistry;

- Interest in molecular biophysics;

- Communicativeness and good command of spoken and written English;

- Diligence at work and consistency in achieving results;

- Additionally, programming skills within the Linux environment (including scripting languages) as well as prior experience in application of numerical methods (such as molecular dynamics simulations) in physics or chemistry will be considered strong assets.

- To be employed, the candidate must be accepted into the PhD school in which the Institute of Physics participates. Applications for the position are through recruitment to the School, online at warsaw4phd.eu.