Application closing date 11/11/2021
Salary £37,467 - £40,927 per annum
Job category/type Research

The Schroeder TEAM is seeking a highly motivated postdoc with expertise in and passion for host-pathogen interaction research for a 3-year BBSRC UK-funded project.

The project builds on the discovery a new glycosyltransferase effector of the respiratory pathogen Legionella pneumophila (Levanova et al. JBC, 2019), the cause of Legionnaires’ disease, and will focus on the characterisation of new molecular mechanisms of host subversion and host defence. Set at the interface of microbiology, cell biology and biochemistry, it will involve a wide range of cellular microbiology, molecular biology and biochemistry techniques combined with imaging and proteomics.

The Schroeder Team is based in the Wellcome-Wolfson Institute for Experimental Medicine at Queen’s University Belfast, providing state-of-the-art labs and research facilities. The successful candidate will be part of a dynamic, international research community, work with collaborators across campus and abroad, and have ample scientific and personal development opportunities.

The post is suited to an organised, productive and communicative individual with recent hands-on research experience in cellular or molecular microbiology, cell biology or biochemistry or a related discipline with focus on host-pathogen interaction or virulence factor characterisation. Expertise in glycosyltransferase enzymology and/or glycobiology would be desired.

The post holder will have a senior role in the team and as such, successful applicants will, apart from the main focus on research, contribute to supervision, lab management and design of new projects.

This post is available on a fixed term contract for 36 months.

The successful candidate must have and your CV/Cover letter should clearly demonstrate you have:

• Have a PhD in Cellular Microbiology, Molecular Microbiology, Cell biology, Biochemistry or a closely related area.
• At least 3 years recent relevant research experience in Cellular Microbiology, Molecular Microbiology, Cell biology, Biochemistry or a closely related area with focus on the functional characterisation of proteins/ protein signalling in infectious disease/ host-pathogen interaction.
• Recent extensive hands-on experience in molecular biology (construction of plasmids, manipulation of bacteria etc.) and mammalian cell culture and at least three of the following:
  • Cell-based infection assays. - Protein purification and functional characterisation (SDS-PAGE etc.).
  • Transfections, transductions and/or gene-silencing/editing.
  • Epifluorescence/confocal and/or super-resolution microscopy.
  • Proteomics sample preparation and data analysis.
  • Analysis of protein glycosylation.

*Please note the above are not an exhaustive list.*

Fixed term contract posts are available for the stated period in the first instance but in particular circumstances may be renewed or made permanent subject to availability of funding.

Queen’s University Belfast is recognised as one of the most diverse organisations in Northern Ireland. We are committed to equality of opportunity, fair participation and welcomes applications from all. However, our Fair Employment Equality Monitoring data tells us that individuals from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) communities, people with a disability and those who identify as LGBT+ Members of the Protestant Community are currently under-represented in this category of work. As such, we particularly welcome applications for this role from individuals who identify with these backgrounds and / or communities.

More details on all our networks can be found here.

Candidate Information

About the School

Attractive reward package

Further information for international applicants