Plant Systems Biology and Evolution
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We have two Research Fellow positions (1. wet lab, 2. dry lab) and 3. Project Officer/Research Associate available

1. Postdoctoral Researcher in Biology/Organic Chemistry
Do you want to contribute to the development of new antibiotics?
We are seeking a highly motivated individual to work as a Post-Doctoral researcher investigating the biosynthesis of plant metabolites with antibacterial activities. The candidate will work in a team comprising bioinformaticians, plant physiologists, chemists and microbiologists based at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (www.plant.tools). The project will involve the usage of in vivo microbiological assays, chromatographic purification of the antibacterial metabolites, analysis of gene expression changes in pathogens (Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and elucidation of biosynthetic pathways in plants by gene expression analysis (assisted by bioinformaticians in the lab). 
The project is a collaboration between the labs of Asst Prof Marek Mutwil (School of Biological Sciences), A/Prof Scott Rice (Singapore Centre on Environmental Life Sciences Engineering) and Prof Roderick Bates (Division of Chemistry and Biological Chemistry), NTU. All three institutes are within close proximity on NTU campus and the candidate will spend time in each of the three laboratories to achieve the key performance indicators of the research project. This is a position of 2 years with possibility of extension.

Responsibilities


  • Achieve key performance indicators of the research project
  • Become proficient in the technical skills and knowledge required to complete the project
  • Design and implement the experiments
  • Supervise and train research staff and undergraduate students

Regularly communicate research progress
  • Present data on regular group meetings
  • ​​Present results on external conferences and meetings
  • Take lead in writing the manuscript

Requirements
  • PhD in organic chemistry, microbiology or plant biology
  • ​Strong interest in learning new techniques
  • Applicants should be highly collegial and able to work effectively in research teams
  • ​Excellent written and oral communication skills in English are required, along with ample experience with scientific writing
  • At least one first name article in a internationally recognized journal
  • Good interpersonal and communication skills in oral and written form, together with organizational proficiency

2. Postdoctoral Researcher in Bioinformatics/Computational Biology
​
How do plants tackle and remember stress?
We are seeking a highly motivated individual to work as a Post-Doctoral researcher to study how plants acclimatize to and survive environmental stress (e.g., drought, flooding), which is essential to develop stress-resistant crops. The candidate will work in a team comprising bioinformaticians and plant physiologists based at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (www.plant.tools). The project will require a multi-omic analysis of changes in gene expression, long and small non-coding RNAs, DNA methylation and metabolomics during acclimation to adverse environmental conditions. The candidate will integrate the data to understand the molecular basis of how plants acclimatize, survive and remember stress. This is a position of 2 years with possibility of extension. The candidate will leave the group with a range of desirable skills in bioinformatics and plant biology.

Responsibilities

  • Become proficient in the technical skills and knowledge required to complete the project
  • Achieve key performance indicators of the research project
  • ​Design and implement the bioinformatics analyses
  • Supervise and train research staff and undergraduate students
  • Participate in writing research proposals

Regularly communicate research progress

  • Present data on regular group meetings
  • Present results on external conferences and meetings
  • Take lead in writing the manuscript

Requirements
  • PhD in computational biology, computer science or related field
  • Experience in working with large datasets and developing tools and algorithms for parallel data analysisCoding in one or more platforms, e.g. Python, R, MATLAB.
  • Applicants should be highly collegial and able to work effectively in research teams
  • Excellent written and oral communication skills in English are required, along with ample experience with scientific writing
  • At least one first name article in a internationally recognized journal
  • Good interpersonal and communication skills in oral and written form, together with organizational proficiency
  • Preferred:  Official training in computational biology, bioinformatics; Experience in analyzing RNAseq, GWAS, Hi-C and other large biological datasets; Familiarity with databases such as UCSC Genome Browser, 1000Genomes, TCGA, and ICGC; Experience in using standard bioinformatics packages such as Samtools, Cufflinks, GATK, Tophat;

What do we offer?
We offer an attractive remuneration package, holiday pay, end-of-year bonus, and insurance. 
Why Singapore?
Singapore is a city-state with one of the highest standards of living in the world seeking to become an international hub for the biomedical and life sciences. Singapore is a vibrant and safe tropical city, with rich Asian heritage and modern style of living, an ideal gateway to explore Asia. With our good base of life sciences players, highly skilled and educated workforce, excellent communication systems, good industry infrastructure and a stable government, Singapore offers an exceptional professional and personal experience.

Nanyang Technological University, School of Biological Sciences, Singapore
Young and research-intensive, Nanyang Technological University (NTU, Singapore) is ranked 11th globally. It is also placed 1st among the world’s best young universities. NTU offers an excellent environment for research and training of scientific skills.

Application
An employment application must contain the following documents:

  • A complete resumé, including date of the thesis defence, title of the thesis, previous academic positions, academic title, current position, academic distinctions, and committee work
  • A complete list of publications
  • A summary of current work (no more than one page)
  • Please use email subject 'BioRF' or 'CompRF' for the first or second advertisement, respectively.
Please send your CV and reference contact to Asst. Prof. Marek Mutwil (mutwil@ntu.edu.sg). Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
3. Project Officer (Molecular Biology)
We are looking for an enthusiastic Project Officer to participate in the recently awarded College of Science Collaborative Award entitled ‘Uncovering the temporal gene expression dynamics of phytoplankton with single-cell RNA sequencing’.

In this project, you will carry out single-cell transcriptomics to study gene expression in algae. You will use a microfluidic device to barcode and analyze gene expression of single algal cells in a population of algae. By studying expression patterns of individual cells in a population (assisted by the bioinformaticians in the lab), you will elucidate which biological pathways and programs are active in the population of the different cells. This is a new, fundamentally different approach to studying gene expression in living organisms, as it allows us to study different states of an organism by looking at only one sample. You will learn how to operate a microfluidic device, work with marine algae and learn the basics in gene expression analysis. Interested candidates will also receive a training in bioinformatics and Python. This is a position for 1 year. The candidate will leave the group with a range of desirable skills in microfluidics, gene expression analysis and algal biology.

Your responsibilities are:
  • Implement the single cell RNA sequencing experimental pipeline, Drop-Seq (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vL7ptq2Dcf0&t=216s)
  • Grow and cultivate marine algae
  • Learn to operate a microfluidic device Poseidon (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmoB_fPc4L4&t=127s)
  • Assist in some administrative duties of the lab

Requirements:
  • Bachelor’s Degree with Honors or Master’s Degree in Life Sciences, Biochemistry, Engineering or related 
  • Successful candidates must have an enthusiasm for research, be self-motivated and well-organized
  • Strong team player with good written and verbal communication skills
  • Able to plan tasks independently and demonstrate good troubleshooting skills
  • Experience with literature search, designing, conducting experiments and data analysis will be advantageous
  • Good working attitude, responsible and able to learn things quickly
  • Singaporeans or Singapore permanent residents are preferred
 
Application
An employment application must contain the following documents:
  • A complete resumé, including date of the thesis defence, title of the thesis, previous academic positions, academic title, current position, academic distinctions, and committee work
  • A complete list of publications
  • A summary of current work (no more than one page)
  • Please use email subject 'PO' for this advertisement.
Please send your CV and reference contact to Asst. Prof. Marek Mutwil (mutwil@ntu.edu.sg). Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
Postdocs / Research Fellows 
We always welcome applications from enthusiastic and qualified Postdocs who are planning to apply for fellowships and are interested in joining our group. Below you find links to possible Fellowship Programs:
Human Frontier Science Program
EMBO Long-term Fellowship
LEE KUAN YEW Postdoctoral Fellowship
PhD Students
If you want to become a graduate student at SBS and want to join our lab, you find information about the application process on the pages below.
Scholarships
​How to apply
Contact information at NTU