Umeå universitet, Teknisk-naturvetenskaplig fakultet

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

Umeå Plant Science Centre, UPSC, is one of Europe's strongest research environments in experimental plant biology. Here, you will have access to state-of-the-art research infrastructure and support from more than two hundred plant researchers. Our research spans from biochemistry and molecular biology to physiology and the ecosystem level (www.upsc.se).

Two postdoctoral positions (2 years) in plant developmental biology

The Department of Plant Physiology seeks to fill two postdoctoral positions who will work in Stephan Wenkel’s research group on a project aimed at studying the role of microProteins in tomato development. The employment is full-time for two years with access on January 1, 2025 or according to agreement.

Department of Plant Physiology

Umeå Plant Science Centre (UPSC) is one of the strongest research environments for basic plant research in Europe. Research at UPSC covers a wide range of disciplines in plant biology including ecology, genetics, physiology, biochemistry, cell biology and molecular biology (see www.upsc.se). The postdoctoral fellowship is going to be placed at the Department of Plant Physiology, which is part of Umeå Plant Science Centre. Our common goal is to understand plants’ ability to adapt and acclimate to a changing world.

Project description and working tasks

We are excited to recruit two postdoctoral researchers for a two-year project (with the possibility of a one-year extension) focused on harnessing microProtein engineering to manipulate tomato development. MicroProteins are small, single-domain proteins that play a crucial role in regulating various biological pathways, opening new avenues for innovation in plant biology (see e.g., Hong et al., PNAS, 2020). In this project, we will use cutting-edge genome-engineering and protein engineering techniques to alter microProtein expression and function in tomatoes, with the goal of transforming how we understand and influence plant growth.

Qualifications

To be appointed under the postdoctoral agreement, the postdoctoral fellow is required to have completed a doctoral degree or a foreign degree deemed equivalent to a doctoral degree. This qualification requirements must be fulfilled no later than at the time of the appointment decision.

To be appointed under the postdoctoral agreement, priority should be given to candidates who completed their doctoral degree, according to what is stipulated in the paragraph above, no later than three years prior. If there are special reasons, candidates who completed their doctoral degree prior to that may also be eligible. Special reasons include absence due to illness, parental leave, appointments of trust in trade union organisations, military service, or similar circumstances, as well as clinical practice or other forms of appointment/assignment relevant to the subject area. Postdoctoral fellows who are to teach or supervise must have taken relevant courses in teaching and learning in higher education

The doctoral degree should be within plant molecular biology or biotechnology. The ability to independently plan your work and further your insight in the research question as well as cooperate in a team is required. Good oral and written communication skills in the English language are also a requirement. The candidates should have extensive laboratory experience with biochemical methods and molecular biology. Experience with omics data analyses and plant transformation (especially tomato) is a merit. We value your creativity, ability to communicate and take initiatives.

Application

The application should contain:

A personal letter that describes your qualifications, research interests, and motivation for application (maximum 2 pages).
CV with full publication list
Certified copies of doctoral degree certificate or equivalent and other relevant degree certificates and grades,
Other documents wished to be claimed.

The application must be written in English or Swedish. The application is made through our electronic recruitment system Varbi. Documents sent electronically must be in Word or PDF format. Log in to the system and apply via the button at the end of this page. The closing date is November 6, 2024.

Further details are provided from Stephan Wenkel, stephan.wenkel@umu.se

We look forward to receiving your application!

The Department of Plant Physiology carries out research and postgraduate education in different fields of the plant sciences including, ecology, biochemistry, physiology and development, and genomics. The department is part of the Umeå Plant Science Centre, which hosts close to 200 employees and 40 principal investigators, representing about 35 nationalities. For more information please visit http://www.plantphys.umu.se/english/ and http://www.upsc.se.