The Vilgalys Mycology Lab at Duke University seeks a postdoctoral researcher in the area of plant-fungal symbiosis and evolution. The selected candidate will contribute to ongoing studies on ecology and evolution of forest soil fungi and their interactions with trees including Populus, Pinus and other species. We are especially interested in linkages between phylogenetic diversity, population structure, and molecular functioning of forest fungi, including their effects on ecosystem processes.
Major Duties/Responsibilities: Design, conduct and interpret laboratory and field based research; lead and contribute to the development of scientific manuscripts and proposals. The postdoc chosen for this position will also have opportunities to interact with collaborating institutions in the US and abroad. Research is facilitated by state-of-the-art equipment/facilities for microbiology, molecular biology, and genomics, in a professional environment with excellent technical support.
Qualifications Required: Ph.D. degree in mycology, molecular ecology, phylogenomics, or related fields. Applicant should have demonstrated expertise in modern molecular ecology methods including quantitative PCR, DNA sequence analyses, phylogentics, as well as working with the informatics tools for microbiome and metagenomic studies. Demonstrated expertise must include a track record of peer-reviewed publications.
Qualifications Preferred: Priority will be given to applicants with a successful history of interdisciplinary, integrative, and innovative research in this area. Interested applicants should send a cv, research statement, and names of 3 references (preferably in a single pdf) to Dr. Rytas Vilgalys, fungi@duke.edu. The position is available immediately and will remain open until a suitable candidate has been hired. For more information on the Vilgalys Lab see: http://sites.duke.edu/vilgalyslab/
update Apr 2016: this position has been filled.