PhD in Biology
- Employer
- MASARYK UNIVERSITY
- Location
- Brno, Czech Republic
- Closing date
- 15 Apr 2019
View more
- Academic Discipline
- Biological Sciences, Life sciences
- Job Type
- Academic Posts, Postdocs
- Contract Type
- Permanent
- Hours
- Full Time
Department of Biology – Faculty of Medicine
Deadline 15 Apr 2019
Start date to be agreed
A Ph.D. position in a newly established laboratory at Biology Department, Medical Faculty, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
Specialization:
Biomedical Sciences
Topic:
Identification and characterization of factors involved in meiotic DNA double strand breaks repair
Annotation:
Faithful repair of meiotic DNA double strand breaks (DSBs) is crucial to promote correct chromosome segregation in the gametes by allowing formation of physical connections (crossovers) between the parental chromosome (homologous chromosomes) and therefore to preserve fertility. Many genes drive this process and most of these factors are conserved throughout evolution, allowing dissection of complex pathways in simpler model organisms such as Caenorhabditis elegans, one of the most powerful systems to study chromosome dynamics during gametogenesis. We have recently shown that C. elegans ortholog of mammalian BRCA1, brc-1, localizes to meiotic chromosomes in a dynamic way throughout meiotic prophase I and is enriched at the crossover sites (Janisiw et al.; 2018 PLoS Genet.), which was not observed in mouse models. BRCA1/BRC-1 is an essential protein for the repair of endogenous and exogenous DSBs and we found that in C. elegans, BRC-1 promotes the stabilization of recombinase RAD-51 in meiotic cells, which allows homologous recombination-mediated repair, which was previously unknown.
Furthermore, we have identified the poly(ADP-ribose) glycohydrolase PARG to be essential in promoting homologous recombination during meiotic progression, as well as displaying a genetic and physical interaction with BRC-1 (manuscript in preparation).
Two Ph.D. positions will be available, to carry on the characterization of the meiotic roles exerted by C. elegans BRC-1 in promoting DNA repair, with particular emphasis on unravelling how post-translational modifications regulate the activity of this protein. Moreover, we identified a completely uncharacterized BRC-1 paralog which might shed new light on the mode of function of BRC-1.
Further, functional analysis of the PARG-BRC-1 interaction will also be performed, possibly in a shared effort between the two PhD students.
Moreover, study of PARG-1 functions during meiosis also holds a crucial interest in the lab, and we have identified an important and completely unknown involvement of this protein during gametogenesis. Deep characterization of its mode of action and identification of both interactors and putative substrates will be performed.
Requirements:
- Strong background in Genetics, Molecular Biology and Biochemistry
- Solid experience with Western Blot, PCR and Immunofluorescence is highly desirable
- Excellent communication in English, Curiosity and enthusiasm about science are all essential skills
In case you are interested, please send your CV with two contact for references via e-application below.
For more information you can contact Dr. Nicola Silva at silva@med.muni.cz
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