Job description

Position as Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Plant Functional Genomics is available at the Sections for Genetics and Evolutionary Biology (EVOGENE) and Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES) at the Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo.

The appointment can be for a period of 3 or 4 years. For a 3-year fulltime appointment, 10% of the time is devoted to required duties, usually in the form of teaching activities. For a 4-year fulltime appointment, 25 % of the time is devoted to compulsory work (e.g. teaching responsibilities at the department). A 4-year appointment will be contingent on the qualifications of the candidate and the teaching needs of the department.

Starting date no later than October 1, 2021.

Postdoctoral fellows who are appointed for a period of four years are expected to acquire basic pedagogical competency in the course of their fellowship period within the duty component of 25 %.

The main purpose of a postdoctoral fellowship is to provide the candidates with enhanced skills to pursue a scientific top position within or beyond academia. To promote a strategic career path, all postdoctoral research fellows are required to submit a professional development plan no later than one month after commencement of the postdoctoral period.

No one can be appointed for more than one Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at the University of Oslo.

Project description

We are searching for a highly motivated person with an interest in stress adaptation, molecular genetics and genomics. Experience with molecular methods relevant to the project as well as research related to gene regulation and signaling will be seen as a benefit.

The Postdoctoral Research Fellow will form part of a team for the project “Evolutionary and functional importance of simple repeats in the genome” funded by the Research council of Norway through the FRIPRO program as a selected frontier research proposal. This project is led by professor Kjetill S. Jakobsen and Associate professor Melinka Butenko forming an interdisciplinary team in genomics and molecular plant biology.

The project focuses on functional significance of short tandem repeats (STRs) for adaptation in Arabidopsis thaliana. STRs consisting of repetitive DNA motifs have been shown to regulate gene expression and protein function consequently affecting the phenotype of an organism. STRs may be extremely variable in length within a population, and serve as a heritable, but semi-reversible, reservoir of standing genetic variation. For sessile organisms, such as plants, STRs could be of major importance for adaptation to local environments. We have already demonstrated, by applying bioinformatic tools and experimental work, an association between gene expression and STR length variation in a sampled population of 472 natural accessions of A. thaliana. Furthermore, we have also shown that STR length variation present in coding regions of the genomes affect protein-protein interactions. The aims of the project is to explore the functional significance of STR length variation in a subset of candidate A. thaliana genes that have been identified by advanced informatics and statistical analysis and to decipher the molecular mechanisms leading to differentiated gene expression by STR length variation.

Initially, the successful candidate will utilise the seed collection from the 1001 genomes project. Plants from accessions that show a correlation between genes with STR length variation and biotic and abiotic parameters will be grown under various conditions and scored for phenotypic differences. In parallel, A. thaliana lines carrying mutated variants of these genes will be complemented with wild type copies of the gene with different STR repeats. Degree of complementation will be scored under normal and variable growth conditions. Subsequent experiments will focus on deciphering how the STR variation affects the molecular pathways these proteins regulate. The second part of the project will compare differences in gene expression where STR length variation is localised to intergenic and genic regions with the aim to understand the molecular mechanisms behind this regulation.

The project has international collaborators and research visits to collaborating partners will be encouraged.

Qualification requirements

The Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences has a strategic ambition to be among Europe’s leading communities for research, education and innovation. Candidates for these fellowships will be selected in accordance with this, and expected to be in the upper segment of their class with respect to academic credentials.

• Applicants must hold a degree equivalent to a Norwegian doctoral degree in Molecular Biology. Doctoral dissertation must be submitted for evaluation by the closing date. Only applicants with an approved doctoral thesis and completed defense are eligible for appointment.
• Fluent oral and written communication skills in English. Communication skills in Norwegian or a Scandinavian language would be an advantage.
• The successful applicant must have skills and experience with molecular plant techniques and a good overview of the resources available of the model A. thaliana.
• Previous experience with projects related to stress adaptation will be seen as an advantage.
• Experience with one or more of the following methods would also be an advantage: protein-protein interaction techniques (such as Co-IP, BiFC, FRET), fluorescent imaging, cloning and recombinant DNA technology; gene expression analysis; genetic methods in Arabidopsis thaliana, e.g. using T-DNA insertion, RNAi, CRISPR/Cas9 system and/or reporter lines.
• Basic bioinformatics skills and basic coding in Python would be positive.

We offer

• Salary NOK 526 000 – 608 200 per annum depending on qualifications in position as Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (position code 1352)
• Attractive welfare benefits and a generous pension agreement
• Professionally stimulating working environment
• Vibrant international academic environment
• Postdoctoral development programmes
• Oslo’s family-friendly surroundings with their rich opportunities for culture and outdoor activities

How to apply

The application must include

• Cover letter including a statement of interest, briefly summarizing your scientific work and interests, and a personal assessment focusing on how you fit the description of the person we seek.
• CV (summarizing education, positions, pedagogical experience, administrative experience and other qualifying activity)
• Copies of educational certificates, and academic transcript of records
• A complete list of publications and up to 5 academic works that the applicant wishes to be considered by the evaluation committee
• Letters of recommendation
• Names and contact details of 2-3 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail and telephone number)

The application with attachments must be delivered in our electronic recruiting system, please follow the link “Apply for this job”. Foreign applicants are advised to attach an explanation of their University's grading system. Please note that all documents should be in English (or a Scandinavian language).

In assessing the applications, special emphasis will be placed on the documented academic qualifications, as well as the candidates motivation and personal suitability. Interviews with the best qualified candidates will be arranged.

It is expected that the successful candidate will be able to complete the project in the course of the period of employment.

Formal regulations

Please see the guidelines and regulations for appointments to Postdoctoral fellowships at the University of Oslo.

No one can be appointed for more than one Postdoctoral Fellow period at the University of Oslo.

According to the Norwegian Freedom of Information Act (Offentleglova) information about the applicant may be included in the public applicant list, also in cases where the applicant has requested non-disclosure.

Inclusion and diversity are a strength. The University of Oslo has a personnel policy objective of achieving a balanced gender composition. We also want to have employees with diverse expertise, combinations of subjects, life experience and perspectives. We will make adjustments for employees who require this.

If there are qualified applicants with special needs, gaps in their CVs or immigrant backgrounds, we will invite at least one applicant in each of these groups to an interview.

Contact information

For further information please contact:

• Dr. Melinka Butenko, phone: +47 22854573 / +47 91766980, e-mail: m.a.butenko@ibv.uio.no

For questions regarding the recruitment system please contact: HR adviser Nina Holtan, phone: +47 228 54424, e-mail: nina.holtan@mn.uio.no.

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