University of Kiel is seeking to fill a position within the research project „Evolution of antibiotic resistance" for a PhD student (m/f)

The Department of Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics at the Zoological 
Institute of the University of Kiel is seeking to fill a position within 
the research project „Evolution of antibiotic resistance" for a

PhD student (m/f)

The position will be for three years. The salary will be according to 
the German TV-L-13 pay scale.

Description:

The alarming spread of resistant bacteria is complicating even the most 
routine clinical interventions. Case in point are highly resistant 
Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which cause almost untreatable respiratory and 
wound infections in the hospital, and play a driving role in cystic 
fibrosis.

The discovery of new antibiotics may offer temporary relief from 
resistance, but it is slow and costly, and does not address the heart of 
the matter: resistance is an evolutionary response to the use of 
antibiotics. Our research program is aimed at investigating the 
evolutionary dynamics underlying antibiotic resistance evolution during 
in vitro antibiotic therapies. The purpose is to devise ways in which 
existing antibiotics can be intelligently used to prevent or at least 
slow down the evolution of resistance. The project will involve 
experimental evolution using Pseudomonas aeruginosa and subsequent 
phenotypic, genomic and functional-genetic analyses of resistant strains.

The project is funded by the German Science Foundation (DFG) and will be 
based in the Department of Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics at the 
University of Kiel, Northern Germany, under the supervision of Dr. 
Gunther Jansen and Prof. Hinrich Schulenburg 
(www.uni-kiel.de/zoologie/evoecogen). The department provides an 
international and interactive atmosphere, while Kiel University and 
connected institutes (e.g., Max Planck Institute in Ploen) offer a 
stimulating research environment with a particular focus on evolutionary 
biology. The city of Kiel is a medium-sized pleasant town located at the 
coast of the Baltic Sea. It is the capital of the most Northern state of 
Germany, Schleswig-Holstein. It offers many opportunities for leisure 
activities, including theatres, an opera, the Schleswig-Holstein 
classical music festival, the world's largest metal festival in Wacken, 
sailing, surfing, cycling, and the famous festivities of the „Kieler 
Woche“ -- one of the major sailing events in Europe.

Requirements for the position:

Master in biology, genetics, microbiology, or related topic; excellent 
background in evolution and microbiology are a must, further required 
are experience with genetics, statistics and dealing with complex 
experimental designs; high motivation; a collaborative spirit; fluency 
in English.

The University of Kiel strives to increase the proportion of women in 
research and education. It therefore encourages qualified women to 
apply. Women will be preferred in cases of comparable qualifications. It 
also explicitly welcomes applications from people with a migratory 
background. The University further makes an effort to employ disabled 
people and will prefer such candidates in case of equal qualification.

Please send applications with CV, one-page statement of research 
interests, and two references, as a pdf-file by email to 
gjansen@zoologie.uni-kiel.de. For further details and questions, you are 
welcome to contact me at gjansen@zoologie.uni-kiel.de.

-- 

Dr. Gunther Jansen
Fellow at Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin
Wallotstraße 19
14193 Berlin
Germany
Tel.: +49 30 89001 192
gunther.jansen@wiko-berlin.de

and

Department of Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics
Zoological Institute
Christian-Albrechts-Universitaet zu Kiel
Am Botanischen Garten 1-9
24118 Kiel
Germany
Tel.: +49 431 880 4148
Fax:  +49 431 880 2403
Email: gjansen@zoologie.uni-kiel.de
URL: http://www.uni-kiel.de/zoologie/evoecogen/jansen/
       http://www.uni-kiel.de/zoologie/evoecogen/evolreservoirs/

Gunther Jansen