We are seeking a highly motivated and enthusiastic Postdoctoral Researcher to join the group of Mikayel AZNAURYAN ( http://www.aznauryan-lab.com/) at ARNA laboratory (U1212 INSERM, UMR5320 CNRS, University of Bordeaux). The position is fixed term for 1 year (with a possibility of further extension). Possible starting date is from May 2022.
The host group
We are interested in studies of interactions between intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) and nucleic acids, with particular focus on disordered translation initiation factors and understanding the molecular mechanisms through which these IDPs participate in the regulation of mRNA translation. For this we use a variety of state-of-the-art techniques, among which the central role is attributed to single-molecule FRET (Aznauryan et al. ChemBioChem 2021, Aznauryan et al. PNAS 2016, Aznauryan et al. JACS 2013, Aznauryan et al. NAR 2016), both in vitro and in live cells (König et al. Nature methods 2015).
The project
The successful applicant will be part of our multidisciplinary research team to utilize single-molecule FRET spectroscopy to study the interactions between a disordered translation initiation factor and model RNA substrates (ssRNA, stem-loops, G-quadruplexes), found within the 5’-UTRs of mRNAs. The goal of this project is to reveal the mechanisms of these interactions and the role of the protein in the context of initiation of mRNA translation. The lab has accumulated significant amount of preliminary data on this project, which will further speed up a publication of this work. The project will primarily involve designing and carrying out single-molecule FRET spectroscopy experiments, in addition a preparation of protein and nucleic acid systems will be required.
The successful candidate will be encouraged (and fully supported) to apply for various local and international postdoctoral fellowships, as well as other possible funding sources.
The potential candidate
• Completed PhD in biophysics, biochemistry, physical chemistry or related field
• Previous experience of work with proteins or nucleic acids is required
• Good understanding of the concepts of biomolecular interactions, their energetics and kinetics
• Previous experience with single-molecule fluorescence spectroscopy, imaging or similar advanced microscopy methods and with coding for scientific data analysis (e.g. with Mathematica, MatLab, etc.) is an advantage.
• The candidate should be proficient in written and oral English.
Interested applicants should send a cover letter (describing their previous achievements, experience and particular motivation to work on this project) and a CV (with contact information for at least two references) to Dr. Mikayel AZNAURYAN (m.aznauryan@iecb.u-bordeaux.fr).
