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Post doc in Immunology : Cayenne, French Guiana

A 24-month postdoctoral position, funded by a PTR grant from the Institut Pasteur, is available starting January 2015 to join the Laboratoire des Interactions Virus Hôtes (LIVH) at the Institut Pasteur de la Guyane.
The Institut Pasteur de la Guyane, a non-profit private foundation of public utility, is part of the Institut Pasteur International Network. LIVH addresses virus-host interactions under distinct aspects: studied viruses are both RNAand DNA viruses and the “host” notion is not restricted to humans but also concerns non-flying terrestrial and arboreal mammals as well as bats.
Project outline: Emerging infectious diseases in humans often originate from pathogens transmitted from animal reservoirs. Among them, bats are important reservoirs of viruses that seem to be harmless or only rarely associated to clinical signs in their hosts. In this context, paradoxically, only a few studies are available on the immune defense system of the bats and are essentially restricted to bat species of the Old World.
The present research program aims to decipher the immune defense of New World bat species to viral infection by characterizing the major innate immune genes that are related to the interferon system and by establishing immortalized cell lines from different organs of the studied bat species. This will allow investigating how these different genes are engaged in the innate immune response of bats in stress conditions such as viral infection or oxydative stress. This program is complementary to other research programs we are conducting dealing with viral biodiversity of bats or bat population genetics that, all together, will permit to gain insights on the mechanisms that allow persistence of viruses in bats.
In this context, a post-doc is needed to manage the experimental part of the program, from the characterization of genes, development of the relative RTqPCR protocols, establishment of immortalized cell lines and their stimulation, analysis of data and reporting. The PTR is based on a partnership between the Laboratoire des Interactions Virus Hôtes (LIVH) and the Unit “Hepacivirus and innate immunity” at the Institut Pasteur Paris. The post holder will benefit from this collaboration and will interact with this collaborative team.
Candidate requirements: Candidates must hold a PhD degree in Biological Sciences. Solid experience in the domain of molecular and cellular biology is essential. Candidates should have good communication and organization skills and be able to work autonomously.
Applicants should send a cover letter and a CV (including a list of publications as well as names and contact information of up to 3 academic references)
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Job details

Employer:Institut Pasteur de la Guyane

Website:http://www.pasteur-cayenne.fr

Location:23 avenue Pasteur, 97300, Cayenne, French Guiana

Expires:December 31, 2014

Job type:Postdoctoral

Salary:Unspecified

Qualifications:Postgraduate - Doctorate/PhD

Employment type:Temporary

Job hours:Full-time