Postdoctoral Fellow Full-time

Postdoctoral Fellow

Hiring Department: Molecular Biosciences

Position Open To: All Applicants

Weekly Scheduled Hours: 40

FLSA Status: Exempt

Earliest Start Date: Immediately

Position Duration: Expected to Continue Until Feb 24, 2027

Location: AUSTIN, TX

PhD must have been received within the past 3 years. This is a temporary training position that can be renewed annually, for a maximum of five years, based upon performance review, progress towards research goals, and continuation of funding.

Purpose

The principal responsibilities of a postdoctoral fellow in the Torii Lab are to conduct independent research projects aligned with the lab's scientific mission and to disseminate research findings through publications and presentations at scientific meetings. The position is expected to pursue cutting-edge research using state-of-the-art technologies and to advance our understanding of plant development and signaling mechanisms that enable adaptation to extreme environments, including underwater conditions. The fellow will be responsible for developing a hypothesis-driven research plan that outlines materials and methods, experimental design, and anticipated outcomes prior to initiating experiments. In addition, the fellow will establish and optimize pipelines for efficient genome editing in the emergent model species Rorippa aquatica. The position will also contribute to the preparation of upcoming research grant proposals. All members of the Torii Lab are expected to uphold the highest ethical standards and to foster a collaborative environment where all individuals work together to drive scientific innovation and discovery.

Responsibilities

• Perform independent research project as a leader of a small team of research technologists/engineers perform functional genomics and developmental biology research to unravel the regulatory network underpinning how a plant metamorphoses epidermal (stomatal) developmental program adapted to submergence. Study developmental biology/cell biology of amphibious plants sing molecular genetics, genome editing, molecular biology, cell biology, genomics/epigenomics/proteomics and related experimental techniques.
• Collaborate with other researchers and research technologists to develop genome-editing system in R. aquatica for functional genomics/developmental biology research described above.
• Data collection, data curation, data organization and data analysis, bioinformatic analysis, run computational pipelines, survey literature.
• Properly document lab notebooks, organize materials (plasmids, seeds, DNA oligos, plants, etc) and data (e.g. confocal image files, RNA-seq files) for the assigned research projects and for the general Torii Lab inventories, strictly adhering to the Lab guideline.
• Maintain, manage, and operate critical pieces of equipment as well as chores in the lab (including proper growth room maintenance, plant cares, seed harvesting, dish washing, weekend watering) as necessary. Be in charge of a specific equipment which the postdoc has a strong expertise.
• Train and mentor junior researchers, such as undergraduates and technicians.
• Actively participate and present at the weekly lab meetings, Departmental seminars, BioTACOS, and other scientific conference/workshops.
• Write technical reports, review articles, fellowship applications, assist grant writing (provide preliminary data for grants) and scientific manuscripts as required.

Required Qualifications

PhD in molecular biology, cell biology, biochemistry, or closely related field. PhD must have been received within the past 3 years.

Salary Range

$70,000

Working Conditions

• Uniforms and/or personal protection equipment (furnished)
• May work around chemical fumes
• May work around standard office conditions
• May work around biohazards
• May work around chemicals

Required Materials

• Resume/CV
• 3 work references with their contact information; at least one reference should be from a supervisor
• Letter of interest