Careers

Umeå University Department of Medical and Translational Biology

Job description

The Department of  Medical and Translational Biology is offering a postdoctoral scholarship within the project quantitative light microscopy studies of lipid membrane dynamics. The scholarship is full-time for two years funded by Kempe fundations with access 01-05-2025 or by agreement.

Departmental specific information

The research group lead by Prof. Richard Lundmark is positioned in a department which harbours multidisciplinary research and a diverse set of methodologies. The aim of the research group is to understand the principles of atypical membrane vesicle formation with a focus on virus replication and caveolae. For more information see (https://lundmark-lab.se/) or (https://www.umu.se/forskning/grupper/richard-lundmark/)

Project description

The aim of this project is to advance the understanding of the fundamental principles that drive the formation of atypical membrane vesicles in cells. We will perform detailed measurements of protein assembly at the lipid membrane surface and determine how this affects properties and dynamics of the membrane. As a model for atypical vesicles we study caveolae, which are small invaginations of the plasma membrane. They are found in abundance in certain cell types and play important roles in the control of lipid homeostasis and membrane tension of the cells.

Due to recent advances, we are now in a unique position where we can reconstitute caveolae using lipid membrane model systems and purified proteins. In combination with cutting edge microscopy techniques, we hereby aim to dissect the driving forces behind their formation. Access to advanced microscopy systems providing high spatial and temporal resolution as well as measurements of protein and lipid interactions is facilitated by the research infrastructure "The Biochemical Imaging Centre at Umeå University" (http://www.kbc.umu.se/english/bicu/).

The postdoctoral researcher will have the opportunity to: 

• Develop the use of advanced microscopy analysis in collaboration with a national research infrastructure in light microscopy
• Develop novel reconstituted membrane model systems
• Explore your research project in a scientific environment with several research groups with extensive experience in virology, biochemistry, cell biology and imaging

Qualifications

The post-doctoral fellow is required to have completed a doctoral degree or a foreign degree deemed equivalent to a doctoral degree. This qualification requirement must be fulfilled no later than at the time of the decision about scholarship recipient. 

Priority should be given to candidates who completed their doctoral degree, according to what is stipulated in the paragraph above, no later than three years prior. If there are special reasons, candidates who completed their doctoral degree before that may also be eligible. Special reasons include absence due to illness, parental leave, appointments of trust in trade union organizations, military service, or similar circumstances, or other forms of appointment/assignment relevant to the subject area.

Doctoral degree should be within (biophysics, biochemistry, biomedicine or equivialent)

Additional requirements are:

• Documented experience from quantitative studies using fluorescence microscopy.
• Good knowledge of both written and spoken English.
• Candidates must be able to conduct independent scientific work and write scientific scripts.

Meriting criteria are: Documented experience of;

• Advanced fluorescence microscopy techniques such as TIRFM, FLIM, SIM, STORM,
• Model lipid membrane systems,
• Protein purification and fluorescent labelling,
• Eukaryotic cell culture,
• Temporal image analysis using software such as Imaris or Fuji,
• Writing scripts for image analysis using for example MatLab.
• Scientific communication

We are looking for candidates who are interested in basic research, curious and can drive and structure their research independently. We seek someone with the ability to work collaborative with the other lab members and other research groups.

Application

The application should be written in English or Swedish, and attached documents should be in Word or PDF format. The application should be registered via Umeå University's e-recruitment system Varbi and submitted by the deadline 01-04-2025.

Application Deadline: April 1, 2025

Salary: Stipendium