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Postdoctoral Research Associate: Experimental Co-Evolution of Microbial Mutualisms

The Hom Lab at the University of Mississippi (UM) is recruiting a postdoctoral researcher to further develop a model experimental system for observing microbial mutualisms evolve in real time. Funded by a new NSF award and connected to an ongoing collaboration with the Kryazhimskiy Lab at UC-San Diego, this project uses synthetic microbial communities, custom strain engineering, lineage tracking, and long-term experimental evolution to ask how cooperative species interactions originate, stabilize, diversify, and fail.

The work will build on the study by Venkataram et al. (2023) Nat Ecol Evol 7:143–154 and the synthetic mutualism created in the Hom Lab between Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The postdoctoral associate will extend this system to dissect how microbial ecosystems co-evolve under controlled laboratory conditions.

We are particularly interested in recruiting someone who wants intellectual ownership. Our NSF project provides a strong experimental foundation, but the postdoctoral associate will also have substantial freedom to pursue new questions that align with the lab’s broader mission to understand how biotic and abiotic factors shape the formation, persistence, and evolution of species interactions, especially symbioses and mutualisms. More about the lab can be found at https://darwinsdaemon.com.

The postdoctoral associate will lead experiments, publish first-author papers, present at national and international meetings, and develop toward an independent scientific career. They will also have opportunities to mentor graduate, undergraduate, and high-school students (e.g., through the ARISE@UM program), and to help develop a course-based undergraduate research module associated with the NSF award. For many students in our geographical region, where research opportunities are scarce, this may be their first real opportunity to find out what research is like, and a big reason why our lab takes outreach as seriously as the science.

What we are looking for:

Applicants should have a Ph.D. by the time of appointment in molecular biology, molecular genetics, synthetic biology, microbiology, evolutionary biology, or a related field.

We do not expect any one candidate to have all the skills below, but strong candidates will bring deep expertise in at least one relevant area and a clear appetite to learn the others; competitive applicants will have some combination of:

• Strong wet-lab expertise in molecular genetics, genetic engineering, synthetic biology, microbial genetics, or a related area
• A working knowledge of evolutionary biology, population genetics, microbial ecology, and/or experimental evolution
• Experience constructing, validating, maintaining, and analyzing engineered microbial strains. Experience with Chlamydomonas and/or budding yeast is a plus
• A record of scientific productivity, such as peer-reviewed publications, preprints, or manuscripts in preparation
• Strong scientific writing and communication skills
• Evidence of ownership and follow-through on complex research projects
• Interest in mentoring junior scientists and contributing to a collaborative lab culture

Experience with genome sequencing, lineage tracking, barcode sequencing, population-genomic analysis, high-throughput phenotyping, natural products, biosynthetic gene clusters, metabolomics, and/or mass spectrometry would be welcome but is not required.

Environment and support

The Hom Lab is based at UM’s Insight Park Innovation Hub, a building that houses academic labs, startups, businesses, UM’s office of commercialization, and state/regional offices for economic development.

Oxford, Mississippi is a lively college town with a vibrant collegiate sports culture, a celebrated literary and music scene, excellent food, and a cost of living that compares favorably with many major US research hubs. It can genuinely be a good place to do hard science and still have a life.

The position is funded for 2.5 years at $62,000 per year, with full health and retirement benefits.

To apply:

Please submit:

1. a cover letter describing your fit and interest
2. a CV
3. contact information for at least three references

Optional supporting materials, such as preprints or manuscripts in preparation, are welcome. Applications on LinkedIn should be followed up with a submission of your materials to the email below.

Questions and application materials should be sent to homlab.postdoc26@protonmail.com with the subject line "Postdoc26 – Coevolution".

Review of applications begins immediately and will continue until the position is filled.

We warmly welcome applications from women and others underrepresented in the sciences. The University of Mississippi is an equal-opportunity employer.