Postdoc position (2-years) in Drug Discovery and Cell-Autonomous Immunity

Umeå University, Medicinska fakulteten

Umeå University is one of Sweden’s largest higher education institutions with over 37,000 students and about 4,700 employees. The University offers a diversity of high-quality education and world-leading research in several fields. Notably, the groundbreaking discovery of the CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing tool, which was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, was made here. At Umeå University, everything is close. Our cohesive campuses make it easy to meet, work together and exchange knowledge, which promotes a dynamic and open culture.

The ongoing societal transformation and large green investments in northern Sweden create enormous opportunities and complex challenges. For Umeå University, conducting research about – and in the middle of – a society in transition is key. We also take pride in delivering education to enable regions to expand quickly and sustainably. In fact, the future is made here.

Are you interested in learning more? Read about Umeå university as a workplace

The Faculty of Medicine, which consists of 13 departments, is responsible for biomedical research and courses in the field of nursing and health care and has an extensive research and graduate education in more than 80 subjects.

Department of Molecular Biology

The department provides a vibrant interfaculty research environment and there is access to a wide range of state-of-the-art imaging, metabolomics, genomics and screening facilities.

Background and description of work tasks

Almost every cell in our body has an intrinsic capacity to detect invading microbes and to respond to the threat by inducing a series of cellular defense responses. Yet, while this so-called cell-autonomous immunity may have a key role in providing protection against everyday encountered microbes, it is less effective against significant disease agents that have evolved measures to neutralize its action.

This projects aims to identify and characterize small chemical compounds that can counteract growth of the obligate intracellular bacterial pathogen Chlamydia trachomatis either by activating cell-autonomous defense responses in infected cells or by repressing the pathogen’s ability to counteract these cellular defenses. The project is expected to provide deeper insights into mechanisms of host-pathogen interaction and to uncover starting points for the development of new host-directed or anti-virulence drugs.

Specific aims of the project include:

The development and optimization of an experimental protocol for high-throughput small compound screening.
The implementation of the screening and candidate validation.
The characterization of the mode of action of validated candidate compounds.

The work tasks include designing and performing experiments and writing reports under supervision of the group leader.

Qualifications

Candidates must hold a University degree equivalent to a European University PhD degree in molecular biology, microbiology, cell biology, or biochemistry (or equivalent fields) at the time of the recruitment. To be eligible you should have completed your PhD degree a maximum of three years before the end of the application period, unless special circumstances exist.

Candidates must have documented experience (including hands-on experience) in molecular genetic techniques and cell culture. Previous experience with high-throughput screening, in particular small compound screening, is considered a strong merit. Moreover, previous work experience in the field of host-pathogen interaction is desirable.

Candidates must be fluent in spoken and written English and highly motivated. Because the project will be of collaborative nature, candidates need to be able to work productively not only independently, but also in a team. Excellent communication skills are required for interacting effectively with senior colleagues and peers, including colleagues from complementary research fields.

How to apply

You apply through our recruitment system. Your application must contain the following documents written in English (preferably) or Swedish:

A CV with information on education, a list of previous and current employments, and a list of publications.
A cover letter describing your research experience and interests and motivation for applying for the position.
Contact details of two to three references.

More about us

The Sixt lab is part of the Laboratory for Molecular Infection Medicine Sweden (MIMS) and the Umeå Centre for Microbial Research (UCMR), an interdisciplinary research center devoted to top quality research and novel applications in the field of microbiology.

You can find more information about us at www.mims.umu.se/groups/barbara-sixt; www.ucmr.umu.se. You find Information about The Department of Molecular Biology at https://www.umu.se/en/department-of-molecular-biology/. For questions regarding the position, please contact the project supervisor: Barbara Sixt (barbara.sixt@umu.se).