POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH ASSOCIATE STUDYING GENOMICS OF HEAT STRESS TOLERANCE DURING TOMATO POLLINATION
Wake Forest University, North Carolina
A postdoctoral research position at Wake Forest University is available as part of a collaborative interdisciplinary NSF Plant Genome Research Program funded project that focuses on using modern genomic tools and the latest RNA-seq technologies to understand mechanisms that convey heat tolerance during tomato reproduction. Plant reproduction, especially pollen tube elongation and fertilization, are essential for seed and fruit production. However, this critical process is also highly vulnerable to heat stress. Dramatically reduced seed and fruit yield occurs when otherwise healthy plants experience heat stress only for a few hours during this critical process. Targeted transcriptional changes are one way to equip plants to combat heat stress from rising temperatures due to climate change. Tomato is an excellent model plant to investigate and identify the molecular mechanisms that underlie heat tolerance during reproduction, as pollen development in this species is heat sensitive and it is replete with excellent genetic and genomic resources.
This post-doctoral researcher will benefit from a supportive collaborative research experience that emphasizes mentoring by a team of co-PIs with diverse expertise in examining the genomics of tomato pollen tube growth to generate heat-tolerant tomato varieties. This collaborative group includes Dr. Mark Johnson (Brown University) and Dr. Ravi Palanivelu (University of Arizona), Dr. James Pease (Wake Forest University), and Dr. Ann Loraine (UNC-Charlotte) whose expertise includes understanding plant reproduction and developing bioinformatic and computational approaches for analysis of our group’s large scale transcriptomic and genomic datasets. This postdoctoral position is in the laboratory of Dr. Gloria Muday and will study reproductive thermotolerance using in vitro and in vivo studies of mutants and transgenic plants with either decreased or increased synthesis of flavonoid specialized metabolites that confer thermotolerance and in naturally thermotolerant variants. Experimental approaches include genomic, genetic, cell biological, metabolic, and biochemical analyses to understand the ability of flavonol antioxidants to reduce high temperature-induced reactive oxygen species signaling.
Applicants should share a letter of interest, CV, and contact information for three referees via this online application portal: Workday application
Additional information about the lab can be found at: http://muday.sites.wfu.edu/ and questions can be directed to muday@wfu.edu.
Duties and responsibilities include:
- Imaging of developing pollen tubes
- Confocal analysis of fluorescent reporters and dyes in pollen
- Examination of flavonoid metabolites
- Analysis of transcript abundance changes by RNA Seq
- Statistical and bioinformatic analysis of genomic and biochemical data
- Generation of transgenic plants
- Collaborating with researchers in the home lab and across the collaborative team
- Opportunities to supervise graduate and undergraduate student researchers
Desired Knowledge/Skills/Abilities:
- Expert knowledge of genomics, molecular genetics, cell, and developmental biology
- Skills in bioinformatic and statistical analysis
- Skills in project and time management
- Excellent written and oral communication skills
- Ability to interact and work collaboratively with others
Minimum qualifications:
Ph.D. in Plant Biology or Genetics or Genomics or related discipline
Location: Winston Salem, North Carolina