5 PhD positions available at Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology

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5 PhD positions available to study
“The Exploration of Ecological Interactions with Molecular and Chemical Techniques”

The application portal (https://imprs-reg.ice.mpg.de/rs/reg/index.php)  will be open from March 24 to May 15.

Begin of registration:        March 24, 2021
Application deadline:        May 14, 2021
Referee deadline:        May 21, 2021
Skype interviews:        June 14-25, 2021
Group Recruitment (via videolink):        July 15-16, 2021
Start of the program:        between Oct 2021 and Jan 1st 2022.

Applicants should have or be about to obtain a Masters or equivalent degree in one of the following fields: entomology, neurobiology, molecular biology, biochemistry, analytical chemistry, plant physiology, genetics, ecology, evolutionary biology, bioinformatics, and mathematics and computer science. All our projects are highly integrative and require willingness to closely collaborate with researchers of different backgrounds.

The Research School is a joint initiative of the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology and the Friedrich Schiller University. We offer state-of-the art equipment, an excellent research environment, supervision by a thesis committee and a structured training program including scientific courses, training in transferable and outreach skills and participation in research symposia. Successful candidates will receive a Max Planck support contract. There are no tuition fees and the working language is English.

Projects offered in 2021
Please find below a list of projects we offer for this year's recruitment. All projects are highly integrative and require the collaboration between different research groups. Applicants can identify up to three projects of interest.

Project 1: Monitoring the rhizosphere via the integrity of the cell wall
Supervisors: Prof. Dr. Ralf Oelmüller, Plant Physiology, Matthias Schleiden Institute, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Priv. Doz. Dr. Axel Mithöfer, Department of Bioorganic Chemistry, MPI.

Project 2: The contribution of microbiome communities in the gut of the mealybug Pseudococcus jackbeardsleyi to the detoxification of cocaine and other tropane alkaloids
Supervisors: Dr. John D'Auria, Leibniz Institute for Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK), Gatersleben, Prof. Dr. Jonathan Gershenzon, Department of Biochemistry, MPI.

Project 3: The effect of climate-relevant temperature shifts on leaf microbiota colonization
Supervisors: Dr. Matt Agler, Plant Microbiosis, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Prof. Dr. Jonathan Gershenzon, Department of Biochemistry, MPI.

Project 4: Metabolic host-symbiont integration in a cuticle supplementing symbiosis
Supervisors: Dr. Tobias Engl, Department of Insect Symbiosis, Prof. Dr. Martin Kaltenpoth, Department of Insect Symbiosis, MPI.

Project 5: Localization and logistics of alkaloids biosynthesis in medicinal plants using single cell metabolomics and transcriptomics Supervisors: Prof. Dr. Sarah O'Connor, Department of Natural Product Biochemistry, Dr. Lorenzo Caputi, Department of Natural Product Biochemistry, MPI.