Researcher in Molecular Microbial Ecology

Centre de Recherche Public - Gabriel Lippmann

Belvaux, Luxembourg

Duties and responsibilities:

We are looking for a postdoc researcher to work on a project funded by the National Research Fund related to the study of the dynamics of microbial populations involved in the anaerobic digestion (AD) process. The project includes international partners such as researchers from the ATB Potsdam (DE), the University of Hohenheim (DE) and researchers from the University of Luxembourg.

The objectives of the project are (1) to better understand the ecology and diversity/dynamics of the microbial communities involved in the AD process when exposed to shifts in the operational parameters, (2) to compare the influence of the reactor type (continuously stirred tank reactors versus plug flow reactors), and the temperature (37 versus 55°C) on the proportion of fermentative bacteria/acetogens/methanogens, and (3) to evaluate the consequences of the reactor type on the process efficiency when submitted to increasing organic loading rates. Additionally, while monitoring the metabolism of the reactors and the biogas production and quality, (4) an integrated “omics” study will be conducted to extract and quantitate metabolites and key enzymes involved in the process to possibly pave the way towards the production of molecular markers and probes aiming at the rapid diagnostic of the process status.

The work will consist mainly in the development of molecular markers and probes adapted to the microbial consortia thriving in anaerobic digesters and to contribute to a molecular monitoring of the microbial population dynamics and activity when digesters are exposed to shifts in the operational parameters. The postdoc researcher will interact with the project team to produce a comprehensive insight on the dynamics of anaerobic microbial consortia through statistical analysis.

Qualifications:

• Applicants shall have a PhD degree in microbial ecology or related field;
• Good competencies in molecular biology (qPCR, cloning, sequencing);
• The candidate must be fluent in English (scientific exchanges), French (administrative language) will be considered as a real advantage.

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