3-year Postdoc position in “Metabolic reprogramming by selective autophagy" (group led by Prof. Reggiori, Aarhus, Denmark)
The Department of Biomedicine at Faculty of Health at Aarhus University invites applications for a position as Postdoc in the field of cell biology and metabolism as per 1 May 2023 or as soon as possible thereafter (the starting date is negotiable). The position is a fixed-term full-time position for 36 months.
The department of Biomedicine prioritises diversity and a good work environment, as this is a prerequisite for groundbreaking research. In a dynamic and international research environment, dedicated employees are looking to generate new knowledge within biomedical research areas such as infection and inflammation, membranes, neuroscience, and personalised medicine. The Department of Biomedicine provides research-based teaching of the highest quality and is responsible for a large part of the medical degree programme. Academic staff contribute to the teaching. English is the preferred language in the laboratory, at meetings and at seminars. The department employs approx. 500 people from all over the world, and they make use of the department’s modern laboratory-, core- and animal facilities. The Department of Biomedicine focuses on innovation, entrepreneurship and collaboration with business and industry, and numerous researchers from the department have established companies to develop new medicinal treatments founded in strong scientific basic research. You can read more about the department here and about the faculty here.
About the research project
Autophagy is a highly conserved eukaryotic process for protein and organelles degradation. This catabolic pathway plays a crucial role in quality control and repair mechanisms necessary to maintain cellular homeostasis. Another key function of autophagy is to mediate metabolic adaptation and survival under stress and limited nutrient conditions, by degrading and recycling cytoplasmic components, and generating an internal pool of metabolic resources. While autophagic degradation was often considered to be non-selective, recent evidence has shown that autophagy can be highly selective. It remains largely unexplored, however, whether and under which conditions selective autophagy is necessary and/or sufficient to mediate the adaptation to environmental changes and scarce nutrients.
The goal of this project is to dissect the role of selective autophagy in metabolic adaptations to nutrient shifts. We have been systematically investigating autophagy-mediated metabolic regulation in yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. In particular, we will monitor cargo material, i.e., proteins and organelles, selectively delivered to vacuoles by autophagosomes during dynamic transitions of different carbon sources and from rich to poor nutrient conditions, by using a combination of genetic techniques and quantitative mass spectrometry-based proteomics. Simultaneously, we have been using high-throughput metabolomics to measure dynamic changes in extra- and intra-cellular metabolites and resolve the metabolic rewiring during the studied nutrient transitions. Next, we will integrate proteomics and metabolomics datasets by using constraint-based and kinetic models to identify metabolic reactions regulated by selective degradation of enzymes or enzyme regulators (e.g., transcription factors) by autophagy. Model-based predictions and relevance for cell survival will then be tested by point mutating these enzymes or regulators to specifically inhibit their down-regulation by selective autophagy. Key findings will also be studied in mammalian cells.
This is a collaborative project together with the laboratories of Professor Joern Dengjel (Department of Biology, University of Fribourg, Switzerland), and Dr. Mattia Zampieri (Institute of Molecular Systems Biology, ETH Zurich, Switzerland), and it is supported by the Sinergia program of the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF).
Application deadline: March 9th, 2023
Postdoc position on “Regulation and function of the protein RAB24" (group led by Prof. Eeva-Liisa Eskelinen, Turku, Finland)
Postdoctoral position is available in the laboratory of Professor Eeva-Liisa Eskelinen at the Institute of Biomedicine, University of Turku. We are looking for a highly motivated person with experience in molecular cell biology to join our research group. The project aims to understand the regulation and function of the small GTP-binding protein RAB24 in mammalian cells. The focus is on characterization of novel RAB24-interacting proteins revealed by our interactome screening. The regulation of RAB24 is relevant to human health, because the protein has been implicated in neurodegeneration, fatty liver and liver cancer.
Fixed-term contract is open until the end of August 2026. Starting date is negotiable, but the earliest possible date is September 2022. Salary will be as detailed in the university salary scale (approximately 3500 – 3700 €/month).
Application deadline: until end of September 2022
Further information: