Umeå University - with its 33,000 students and over 4,000 employees - is an organisation in constant change and development. Umeå University conducts groundbreaking research within several areas - several in which we are among the best in the world - within others regarded as the leaders in Sweden. We are one of Sweden’s largest providers of education and offer a broad and attractive range of courses and programmes. Our campus constitutes an inspiring environment for everyone that studies and works here. We wish to co-operate with companies and organisations throughout the Umeå region and all over the world.

Project description: Signal Transduction in Host-Microbial Interactions and Inflammation. The innate immune system provides the first line of defense against microbes and other foreign substances. Innate immune detections of and responsiveness to microbes is mediated by sets of receptors known as pattern recognition receptors (PRRs). PRRs detect highly conserved molecular structures on microbes called microbial associated molecular patterns (MAMPs). PRRs also detect molecular structures released by stressed or damaged host cells. These endogenous molecules are generally referred to as damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs).We are interested in understanding the mechanisms that govern the regulation of PRRs signaling pathways and how the breakdown of such regulation may lead to inflammation or impair anti-microbial host defenses. The studies will involve using various in vivo mouse models of inflammation and infection as well in vitro studies using a variety of techniques including flow cytometry, microscopy, lentiviral transduction, mass spectrometry, standard cell culture, protein biochemistry, and cell/molecular biology techniques.

For more details please contact: Dr. Nelson Gekara, nelson.gekara@mims.umu.se, telephone no +46-(0)90-785 08 17.

Position description: Applicants are sought from highly motivated individuals from all over the world with at least a Masters degree or its equivalent in cell/molecular biology, immunology microbiology or a related discipline. Prior experience in active research lab will be an added advantage. The successful candidates will participate in activities provided by the Laboratory for Molecular Infection Medicine Sweden (MIMS) and therefore have a chance to interact with and learn various scientific and technical expertise from a dynamic team of researchers within the Umeå Centre for Microbial Research (UCMR) at Umeå University and the Nordic EMBL Partnership for Molecular Medicine. The position is available starting fall 2010 for a maximum period of 5 years.

Location: Our new lab situated in the Department of Clinical Microbiology belongs to the MIMS (The Laboratory for Molecular Infection Medicine Sweden). MIMS constitutes the Swedish node within the Nordic partnership for Molecular Medicine that is formed together with the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) and nodes in Finland (FIMM) and Norway (NCMM). MIMS is established within the Umeå Centre for Microbial Research (UCMR) at Umeå University. The groups of the MIMS work in modern laboratories with well equipped common facilities and platforms in a creative, inspiring and highly interactive environment.

More information about MIMS on www.mims.umu.se/, The Nordic EMBL Partnership for Molecular Medicine (Nordic Nodes for Molecular Medicine) on www.embl.de/research/partnerships/nordic_nodes/index.html, and UCMR: www.ucmr.umu.se/

Qualifications: Applicants must 1) hold or anticipate receiving within the next months a University degree equivalent to a European University Master degree in biology preferably in the fields of immunology, cell/molecular biology, microbiology or related disciplines.

Special eligibility: In order to be accepted to postgraduate education, it is required that the applicant has the following:
1. necessary knowledge from University higher education or corresponding education, and/or
2. special professional experience that is assessed in relation to the postgraduate education area,
3. necessary English language skills, both in writing and in speaking.

Start date: Fall 2010.

Salary/type of position: The salary is made up of a postgraduate student allowance (“utbildningsbidrag”) for the first two years and the salary successively increases according to a stipulated scale in the last two years of the PhD position (“doktorandtjänst”).

Other information:
www.umu.se/medfak/utbildning/forskarutb/ handbok/Forskarutbildningshandboken_eng.pdf

The procedure for recruitment for the position is in accordance with the Higher Education Ordinance (chapt. 12, 2 §) and the decision regarding the position cannot be appealed. The applications will be discarded or, if the applicant wishes, returned two years after the position has been filled.

Application procedure: The application should be in English and should include a cover letter with a brief statement of research experience and interests, three reference names with contact details (phone numbers and e-mail addresses) and a CV.

Union information is available from SACO, +46-(0)90-786 53 65, SEKO, +46-(0)90-786 52 96 and ST, +46-(0)90-786 54 31.

Documents sent electronically should be in MS Word or PDF format.

The application period for this advert has expired.