Postdoc Employee - Plant Transformation and Developmental Biology Dept. - Plant & Microbial Biology -MEPMB - Benjamin Blackman Lab

Postdoc Employee - Plant Transformation and Developmental Biology - Plant & Microbial Biology

The Plant & Microbial Biology Department at the University of California, Berkeley seeks applications for a Postdoctoral Scholar in the Blackman Lab, in the area of plant transformation and developmental biology. The aims of the position will be tailored to the expertise of the successful applicant and complement the Blackman Lab's broad interests in the genetic basis of adaptation and domestication, the evolution of plant development, and mechanisms of organism-environment interaction.

Applying tools from transcriptomics and plant biotechnology, the postdoc will contribute to current NSF-funded work in the lab that seeks to define gene regulatory programs that inhibit transformation and regeneration in sunflower. Specifically, they will take a comparative experimental approach to assess how regeneration-promoting experimental treatments with development regulators engender differential gene expression patterns in patterns in sunflower as compared to multiple related, readily transformable species in the Asteraceae. This information will then be leveraged to advance reagent design and delivery strategies for transformation and gene editing in sunflower.

Responsibilities:

The postdoc will work closely with the PI, Ben Williams (UC Berkeley), Ryan Nasti (USDA-ARS Western Regional Research Center), additional collaborators, and lab personnel to design and lead research on the development and evolution of recalcitrance to transformation in the common sunflower, Helianthus annuus. The position also involves preparing grant proposals and manuscripts, data management and dissemination, organization and content development for workshops with land managers, and mentoring graduate and undergraduate students. The ideal candidate will demonstrate the ability to integrate across biological disciplines, identify and troubleshoot promising new methodologies independently, and use the appointment to develop and pursue novel, exciting questions.

PhD (or equivalent international degree) or enrolled in a PhD degree program (or equivalent international degree).

Ph.D. (or equivalent international degree) required by the appointment start date. No more than three years of post-degree research experience by the start date.

Demonstrated expertise in plant tissue culture and molecular biology.

Expertise in analysis of transcriptomic datasets, programming for bioinformatics, biostatistics, machine learning, plant or gene expression studies.

Excellent writing and communication skills.

• 3 required (contact information only)

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