Jobs
Project Assistant/Postdoc Positions
Project
Profile
Applications are invited for Open Project Assistant/Postdoc Positions in Computational biology, bioinformatics and immunology at Ashoka University, Sonipat.
Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have emerged as an alternative to conventional antibiotics in the face of antimicrobial resistance due to their broad-spectrum antimicrobial, antifungal, and antiviral activities and lower rates of microbial resistance evolution against them. Importantly, the multimodal antimicrobial activity of AMPs significantly reduces the evolution of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) against them. Thus, AMPs are getting integrated into clinical practices where the AMPs work individually or synergistically with other AMPs and conventional antimicrobial agents. A growing number of studies have recently implemented both empirical and computational methods either to isolate novel AMP variants from extinct and extant animal taxa or to obtain synthetic AMPs with predictably higher antimicrobial efficacy, followed by clinical trials. Here, the use of bioinformatics tools to analyse big genomic, metagenomic or proteomic datasets across species provides a more streamlined and cost-effective solution than directly adopting an empirical paradigm. However, despite these efforts successfully expanding the repertoire of novel AMPs, only a few of these novel individual AMPs tasted the success of clinical trials primarily because of the rapid evolution of resistance against them by multidrug-resistant (MDR) pathogens (ESKAPE pathogens). Therefore, the net efficacy of therapeutic intervention implementing AMPs became limited.
Hence, to design AMP therapeutics against these MDR pathogens with minimal risks of AMR counter-evolution, it is pivotal to gain a wider comparative perspective of how genomic signatures (e.g., mutation rates and/or standing genetic variations) of AMPs in nature, both within and across species, may have evolved with respect to their naturally occurring pathogen repertoire.Therefore, this project aims to understand and analyse the diverse repertoire of natural and synthetic AMPs, their structural and functional characterisation, and the identification of complementary molecules for antimicrobial cocktails against MDR pathogens. In this context, two
positions are available for a project assistant and a postdoctoral fellow to work on a collaborative, co-supervised project in Dr. Imroze Khan’s laboratory at Ashoka University. A suggested initial specific focus of the work is on identifying novel variants of AMPs implementing large language models (LLMs) and comparative bioinformatics followed by in-silico modelling of structure and function.
Website link for the Lab involved: The Evolutionary Immunology laboratory (https://evoecoimmunol.blog/) at Ashoka University
Duration
Both positions are expected to start around October 2024. Initially funded for 1.5 years, the postdoctoral candidate is expected to apply for national and, if appropriate, international postdoctoral fellowships.
Money
- For the project assistant position: A monthly stipend of up to INR 45,000 (based on experience).
- For the postdoctoral position: A monthly salary of up to INR 70,000 (based on experience).
Qualification
The project assistant position best suits someone with a BS-MS in Bioinformatics (experience in handling large omics datasets).
The postdoctoral position is best suited for a person with a PhD in comparative bioinformatics, data homogenisation, and in-silico physicochemical modelling (including thorough Python or R programming knowledge).
Candidates for both positions must be self-motivated, independent, and possess strong oral and written scientific communication skills. The latter is critical as the work itself will be highly collaborative, potentially engaging multiple laboratories.
To Apply
To apply, send a letter of motivation, a detailed CV, and contact details of two references to imroze.khan@ashoka.edu.in by 31st August 2024. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted for an interview.