Postdoctoral Researcher in antibiotic resistance

Do you want to contribute to top quality medical research?

The Department of Microbiology, Tumor and Cell Biology (MTC) at Karolinska Institutet conducts research and teaching in immunology, infection biology, cell biology and cancer. Key words are multidisciplinary, bridging, translational, national and international collaborations.

Dr. Edmund Loh is an Associate Professor in medical microbiology at the Department of MTC. His research focuses on how non-coding RNA molecules (ncRNAs) in bacterial pathogens such as Neisseria meningitidis and Streptococcus pneumoniae contribute to disease progression. His group was the first to demonstrate a direct link between a bacterial ncRNA and the development of invasive meningococcal disease in humans.

Dr. Lina Davies Forsman is a senior consultant in infectious diseases and an Associate Professor at the Department of Medicine Solna. She combines clinical work (mainly with tuberculosis), teaching, and research on difficult-to-treat mycobacterial infections. Her work includes clinical, microbiological, and epidemiological studies conducted both nationally and internationally.

We are looking for a postdoctoral research fellow (funded by the KI Research Incubator – KIRI) to work on a project to uncover genetic mechanisms of resistance to pretomanid and meropenem-clavulanate in multidrug-resistant tuberculosis.

Your mission

The KIRI postdoctoral fellow will be jointly supervised by Associate Professor Edmund Loh and Associate Professor Lina Davies Forsman. This joint supervision will provide a unique opportunity to combine molecular microbiology with clinical infectious disease research. Through strong mentorship, access to two collaborative research environments, and advanced training programs, the postdoc will develop a broad interdisciplinary skill set. In this KIRI project, Dr. Loh will supervise the postdoc in studying how gene polymorphisms, differential gene and ncRNAs expression could influence antibiotic resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis, using molecular techniques such as gene cloning, transcriptomic sequencing, and RNA analysis. Dr. Davies Forsman will supervise the postdoc in understanding clinical aspects of tuberculosis infections and how basic research can be translated into clinical applications.

As a postdoc in this project, you will be part of KIRI, the KI Research Incubator, a unique initiative at KI to build a community for interdisciplinary research and breakthrough discoveries. You will have access to two PI:s that you can meet and interact with to facilitate the research process and increase the synergetic effects. You will also have the opportunity to meet other KIRI postdocs, present your work at scientific events, and take part in KIRI activities. Read more about KIRI here.

The postdoctoral fellow will work with an international research team in an international collaboration to design and conduct research relevant to the research group’s agenda while receiving advanced training to enhance professional skills and research independence. The postdoc’s time will also be devoted to data and database management, analysis, manuscript preparation and career development. The candidate will be asked to collaborate with others, including graduate students, and provide her/his expertise in other projects. There are no teaching requirements but opportunities to teach can be facilitated.

Your profile

To be eligible for employment as a postdoctor a doctoral degree or a foreign degree deemed to be equivalent to a doctoral degree is required. This eligibility requirement must be fulfilled at the latest at the time of the employment decision. It is considered as an advantage if you have completed your doctoral degree within the last three years, if there are special reasons, your degree may have been completed earlier.

Being fluent in spoken and written English is required. The successful candidate has a strong interest and background in bacterial pathogenesis and RNA regulation. The candidate we are looking for is highly collaborative and generous with sharing her/his knowledge. She/he is an independent researcher, with a strong interest in bacterial gene regulation and RNA biology. Key skills include working in a biosafety level 2 plus (BSL-2*) lab, bacterial gene cloning (knock-out, mutagenesis), antibiotics resistant phenotypic assays, and manuscript writing.

Requirements for the postion

• Extensive knowledge in bacterial gene regulation and RNA biology to independently perform experiments in a minimum BSL-2 lab (essential)
• Experience in generating antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains and engineered targeted mutants to study resistance mechanisms (essential)
• Experience in phenotypic assays, including MIC testing and growth curve analysis, to validate resistance profiles (essential)
• Ability to initiate, conduct, and publish successful research projects, evidenced by a track record of publications in peer-reviewed scientific journals in the medical area (essential).
• Social skills, creative thinking, and language skills, especially in English, are an advantage.
• Good interpersonal skills and ability to work in teams are essential.
• Work experience with bacterial pathogens such as mycobacterium, meningococcus, Klebsiella or other bacterial pathogens.

What do we offer?

A creative and inspiring environment with wide-ranging expertise and interests. Karolinska Institutet is one of the world's leading medical universities. At Karolinska Institutet, we conduct successful medical research and hold the largest range of medical education in Sweden. At KI, you get to meet researchers working with a wide range of specialisms and methods, giving you ample opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience with the various scientific fields within medicine and health. It is the crossover collaborations, which have pushed KI to where it is today, at the forefront of global research. Several of the people you meet in healthcare are educated at KI. A close relationship with the health care providers is important for creating groundbreaking top quality education and research. Karolinska Institutet is also a state university, which entitles you to several benefits through our collective agreement.

Location: Solna

Choose to work at KI – Ten reasons why-

Application

An employment application must contain the following documents in English or Swedish:

• PhD certificate
• A complete resumé, including date of the thesis defence, title of the thesis, previous academic positions, academic title, current position, academic distinctions, and committee work
• A complete list of publications
• A summary of current work (no more than one page)

The application is to be submitted through the Varbi recruitment system.

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