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Phd In Understanding Bacterial Infections In Potato And Tomato Crops Through The

article_published_on_label
February 18, 2025
Location
Wageningen
End date
Mon 10 March 2025
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Your job

Are you interested in computational approaches to understand bacterial infections in plants? Are you curious about how the complex interplay between pathogens unravels? Then this PhD project could be what you’re looking for!

As a fully funded PhD candidate in the Systems & Synthetic Biology Chair Group within the Horizon EU funded project POMATO (Effective management strategies to tackle

C. sepedonicus
and
R. solanacearum
on POtato and toMATO crops) you will work to understand how to safeguard the health of potato and tomato plants.
For this PhD position, you will work towards the identification of keystone microbial species and molecular features from both plant and bacteria that can prevent the progression of infection caused by

C. sepedonicus
and
R. solanacearum

by:

• using modelling tools like Genome Scale Models to understand the potential of Metagenomic assembled genomes and to study microbial co-occurrence and metabolic potential in healthy and infected plants;
• using network approaches and other statistical and machine learning tools to integrate multi omics data with metabolic modelling results to map key molecular features from both plants and bacteria to identify and define infection signature and to characterized molecular mechanisms that can contribute resistance or be target for treatment.

During the PhD project you will:

• work within highly interdisciplinary colleagues in a collaborative environment both within SSB at WUR and within the project consortium that comprises research institutes from Europe and South America;
• develop and lead novel research questions, design experiments, analyse and synthesize results, and communicate outcomes at (inter)national conferences as well as publish these outcomes in peer-reviewed journals;
• contribute to the teaching activity of the group as part of your PhD training by taking part in courses and by supervising thesis students.

You will work in the
Systems & Synthetic Biology
chair group, led by Prof. Maria Suarez-Diez under direct supervision of Maria Suarez-Diez and Edoardo Saccenti.

Your qualities

The ideal candidate should have the following qualities:

• a successfully completed MSc degree in Systems Biology, Biotechnology, Bio-engineering, Chemical Engineering, Bioinformatics, Applied statistics and/or related fields;
• experience in metabolic modelling and statistical methods;
• programming skills;
• given the international nature of the project strong spoken and written communication skills are required.

For this position your command of the English language is expected to be at C1
level
. Sometimes it is necessary to submit an internationally recognised Certificate of Proficiency in the English Language. More information can be found
here
.

We offer you

Wageningen University & Research offers excellent
terms of employment

. A few highlights from our Collective Labour Agreement include:

• partially paid parental leave;
• working hours that can be discussed and arranged so that they allow for the best possible work-life balance;
• there is a strong focus on vitality and you can make use of the sports facilities available on campus for a small fee;
• a fixed year-end bonus of 8.3%;
• excellent pension scheme.

In addition to these first-rate employee benefits, you will receive a fully funded PhD position and you will be offered a course program tailored to your needs and the research team.

The gross salary for the first year is € 2.901,- per month rising to € 3.707,- in the fourth year in according to the
(scale P). This is based on a full-time working week of 38 hours. We offer a temporary contract for 18 months which will be extended for the duration of the project if you perform well.

Wageningen University & Research offers plenty of opportunities for growth and development, with a strong internal recruitment policy and excellent training programmes.

You will work on the greenest and most innovative campus in the Netherlands, in an international and open working environment. For 20 consecutive years, we have been voted the "

best university
" in the Netherlands! A place to be proud of.

Coming from abroad

Wageningen University & Research is the university and research centre for life sciences. The themes we deal with are relevant to everyone around the world and Wageningen, therefore, has a large international community and a lot to offer to international employees.

Because we expect you to work and live in the Netherlands our team of advisors on Dutch immigration procedures will help you with the visa application procedures for yourself and, if applicable, for your family.

Feeling welcome also has everything to do with being well informed. We can assist you with any additional advice and
information
about for example helping your partner to find a job, housing, or schooling. Finally, certain categories of international staff may be eligible for a tax exemption on a part of their salary during the first five years in the Netherlands.

Do you want more information?

For more information about this position, please contact Maria Suarez Diez by email:
maria.suarezdiez@wur.nl

, and Edoardo Saccenti by email:
edoardo.saccenti@wur.nl
.

For more information about the procedure, please contact Rutger Voorrips, corporate recruiter, by email:
rutger.voorrips@wur.nl
.

Ready to apply?

Click on the application button next to the vacancy on our website. Only applications submitted through our website will be considered.

Your application should include:

1) CV highlighting your education & experience
2) Motivation letter detailing why you think you are a good candidate for this position and
3) a max 1 page summary of your master thesis outlining the computational aspects of your work.
This vacancy will be listed up to and including March 10
th
2025. We hope to schedule the first job interviews in the first half of April 2025. The intended start date is May/June 2025.

Welcome, safe, and valued

Wageningen University & Research (WUR) highly values diversity and inclusion because we believe that different insights lead to innovative solutions. We create a work environment where everyone feels welcome, safe, and appreciated, regardless of background, identity, or experience. Together, we are building a culture where everyone's unique contribution adds to the success of our organization.

We are

The mission of Wageningen University & Research is ‘To explore the potential of nature to improve the quality of life’.
We pursue this mission through a synergistic approach between Wageningen University and Wageningen Research Foundation (applied research). Our research focuses on questions within the domains of food, living environment, and society. With approximately 30 locations, 7,700 staff members, 2,500 PhD candidates, and over 13,000 students, Wageningen University & Research is among the world’s leading knowledge institutions in its domain. The integral approach to challenges and the collaboration across various disciplines form the core of the unique Wageningen approach.

Read the
5 reasons
why your future colleagues enjoy working at WUR and watch this video to get an idea of our green campus!
We will recruit for the vacancy ourselves and do not appreciate unasked for services from recruitment agencies. However, sharing in your network is appreciated.

Apply

The full description of the vacancies in Dutch can be found on the

Dutch vacancy page
.

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