Functieomschrijving
Plant photosynthesis is the most important biological process, facilitating nearly all of life on earth. It is also the main driver of plant production, converting solar energy into sugars as building blocks for plant biomass and crop yield. Despite very successful breeding efforts to improve crop yield in the past, very little of this improvement can be attributed to an improvement in photosynthesis efficiency. This despite the fact that there is genetic variation for photosynthesis efficiency, although the genes involved have not yet been characterized. In this project, you will follow up on previous quantitative genetic analysis of time-resolved photosynthesis efficiency obtained through our Phenovator facility on the Arabidopsis HapMap population. You will re-analyse the phenotypic data in collaboration with statistical support from WUR-Biometris and you will identify loci and underlying candidate genes involved in contributing to Arabidopsis photosynthesis efficiency under different conditions. You will investigate those candidate genes to identify the actual genetic variation underlying the selected loci and you will elucidate the function of those genes. Together with participating companies in the project, you will explore the options to use the information thus obtained on Arabidopsis to breed for improved photosynthesis efficiency in crop species.
We are looking for an ambitious scientist and an enthusiastic team player with the following qualifications:
- An excellent academic record in plant sciences (PhD), particularly in quantitative and molecular genetics.
- Expertise with Arabidopsis biotechnology or photosynthesis physiology.
- Strong affinity with statistics and plant phenotyping
- Excellent oral and written English communication skills
Conditions
We offer you a position in a lively research environment in the expanding field of photosynthesis research, in close collaboration with staff, PhD and MSc students, and representatives of participating plant breeding companies; there will be opportunities to expand your scientific knowledge through courses, conferences and training. The position can be 0.8 or 1.0 fte, initially for 12 months which will be extended with another 12 months based on your performance (based on full time employment of 38 h/week). Gross salary per month will be between € 3.238 and € 4.084 (based on 1.0 fte). In addition, we offer a holiday allowance of 8% and an end-of-the-year bonus of 8.3% of your annual salary.
Additional information
For more information about this position, please contact Prof. Mark Aarts (mark.aarts@wur.nl; +31317485413). For information on the selection procedure, please consult Ms. Hedwig Casteels (hedwig.casteels@wur.nl).
You can apply up and until August 27, 2018 For this position you can only apply online:
www.wageningenur.nl/career
