PhD position in chromatin dynamics during germination under the supervision of Dr Aline Probst at the Institute of Genetics, Reproduction and Development (iGReD) in Clermont-Ferrand, France.

What are you going to do?

Role of chromatin dynamics in seed germination

You will work on a project aiming to understand the mechanisms and biological role of chromatin reorganisation during seed germination. Histone variants affect nucleosome stability and deposition of epigenetic marks on histones, and contribute to gene expression control. Specific histone variants and modifications characterise chromatin organisation in the dry seed embryos and are hypothesised to be key players in the rapid transcriptome reprogramming during seed germination.

Your aim will be as a first step to characterise chromatin organisation in dry seeds focusing on histone variants and histones modifications. Then, you will investigate how chromatin organisation is remodelled during seed germination and early seedling development under optimal and stress conditions. Finally, you will investigate the promising action of plant biostimulants that prepare seeds for critical stress periods (priming) by studying how they modify chromatin organisation during seed germination. You will work on two plant species: the model species Arabidopsis thaliana and the cultivated species Brassica napus (oilseed rape). You will take advantage of available Arabidopsis mutant collections and transgenic lines carrying tagged histone variants to dissect mechanistically chromatin dynamics in the germinating seed and translate your discoveries to Brassica napus, for which plant material with different germination efficiency will be made available by the DSV company.

You will actively collaborate with partners at the CSIC in Madrid (Spain) for mass spectrometry and oilseed rape transformation, at the ENS (France) for epigenomics, and at the DSV Company (Germany) for plant phenotyping. This will provide a multi-disciplinary training ranging from fundamental knowledge in epigenomics, mass-spectrometry and bio-imaging to a more applied experience in plant phenotyping in a breeding company.

What do you have to offer?

  • MSc in Molecular Biology, Plant Science or related biological sciences.
  • Knowledge in molecular biology.
  • Background in genetics and epigenetics.
  • Strong interest in multi-disciplinary approaches centred on genetics.

It is a preference if you are also motivated to learn and apply bioinformatics approaches.

Our offer

The appointment will be on a temporary basis for a period of three years. The appointment will be according to the employment rules of France and should lead to a dissertation (PhD thesis). A Personal Career Development Plan will be drafted that includes the attendance to EpiSeedLink courses and meetings.

The gross monthly salary will be according to the MSCA programme, taking into account the country-specific correction coefficient. Besides the salary, you will obtain a mobility allowance (see page Requirements and Conditions).

About us

University Clermont Auvergne (UCA) is a multidisciplinary higher education institution composed of 39 research laboratories working in the fields of fundamental and engineering sciences, life and health sciences as well as law, human and social sciences. Our lab belongs to the Genetics, Reproduction and Development institute (iGReD), which is located in a modern building, inaugurated in 2017, and comprises state of the art facilities in microscopy and image analysis, molecular biology, bioinformatics and high computing capacities and brand new plant growth facilities. The iGReD is composed of 16 research teams working on various model species and provides a stimulating research environment with many PhD students and postdocs, weekly seminars and a dedicated group of 7 teams working on chromatin and epigenetics in drosophila, mouse and plants.

Any questions?

Do you have any questions, or do you require additional information? Please contact: Dr Aline PROBST; aline.probst@uca.fr.