Research Associate in Biological Physics

The group of Prof Teuta Pilizota, at the University of Cambridge, seeks to appoint an outstanding researcher to join its effort to understand how physico-chemical forces limit bacterial growth.

Vibrio natriegens is one of the fastest-growing organisms ever known, as it can double in about 10 minutes. That said, if we look simply at its protein sequences, it is more than 97% similar to another Vibrio species, V. campbellii, which takes twice as long to double. Therefore, it is unlikely that V. natriegens simply adopted its proteome for faster growth. Intrigued by this puzzle of supercharged growth, we recently compared the speed of enzymes found in V.natriegens with those of V. campbellii, and of the bacteria Escherichia coli, and Bacillus subtilis, which are much slower growing. We would like to find out why there are such substantial differences. It seems that the biological environment created in the cytoplasm of V. natriegens has unique physico-chemical properties that effectively raise the temperature - and thus speed up - the rate at which reactions occur.

You will work together with an international HFSP funded team composed of Terence Hwa, Goerg Fritz and Sven van Teeffelen to characterise these factors: pH, osmolytes, crowding, and membrane potential, in a range of conditions that could influence them and further validate the effect of a limited set of candidate variables in vitro. In parallel, we will pursue a complementary approach, to look for additional pairs of closely related Vibrio species with vastly different growth rates, apply comparative genomic analysis to identify potential genetic drivers, and test their effects in vivo and in vitro.

To be successful, you will have a PhD (or be close to obtaining) in biological or soft matter physics or a related subject and strong background in microbial physiology. You will be an expert in customized software development for image and data analysis (phyton, Matlab), have experience in bespoke microscopy and knowledge of the Health and Safety procedures and safe lab practice.

You will be located at the Department of Physics Cavendish Laboratory JJ Thomson Avenue Cambridge CB3 0HE, UK.

Appointment at research associate level is dependent on having a PhD including those who have submitted but not yet received their PhD (in which case appointment will initially be made at research assistant and amended to research associate when the PhD is awarded).

Please be advised that references will be required in advance of interviews, therefore, please ensure that you provide your consent on the application form as relevant.

Fixed-term: The funds for this post are available until the end of August 2027 in the first instance. Any possibility of extension will be discussed during the project.

To apply online for this vacancy and to view further information about the role, please visit: www.jobs.cam.ac.uk/job/48770.

Please ensure that you upload your Curriculum Vitae (CV) and a cover letter in the upload section of the online application.

If you have any questions about this vacancy please contact Teuta Pilizota (tp579@cam.ac.uk). If you have any questions about the application process, please contact rutherford.hr@phy.cam.ac.uk.

Please quote reference KA43687 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.

The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.

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