Postdoc – Evolution of cnidarian gene regulation

The Institute

The Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG) is an international biomedical research institute of excellence, based in Barcelona, Spain, with more than 400 scientists from 44 countries. The CRG is composed by an interdisciplinary, motivated and creative scientific team which is supported both by a flexible and efficient administration and by high-end and innovative technologies.

In April 2021, the Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG) received the renewal of the 'HR Excellence in Research' Award from the European Commission. This is a recognition of the Institute's commitment to developing an HR Strategy for Researchers, designed to bring the practices and procedures in line with the principles of the European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers (Charter and Code).

Please, check out our Recruitment Policy

The role

We are seeking a highly motivated postdoctoral researcher to investigate genome regulation during early development in cnidarians. The successful candidate will combine targeted perturbation experiments with high-throughput single-cell molecular profiling to validate cell-lineage gene regulatory networks. We welcome enthusiastic applicants with a broad interest in evolutionary biology, gene regulation, and/or chromatin biology, and with a solid background in developmental biology and functional genomics.

The work will be part of our ERC-funded project CELL-SYSTEMATICS, which aims at understanding how animal cell type diversity originated and evolve. The candidate will be part of a highly interdisciplinary team that includes developmental, computational, evolutionary and molecular biologists.

References

Elek, A. et al. Decoding cnidarian cell type gene regulation. bioRxiv Preprint at

About the lab

The Sebé-Pedrós lab studies the evolution of cell type programs and genome regulation, combining single-cell genomics, chromatin profiling, and comparative genomics methods in a phylogenetically diverse array of eukaryotes. For more details about the lab, visit the lab website:

Whom would we like to hire?

Professional experience

Must Have

• Experience in Nematostella genetics
• Experience in basic molecular biology protocols and microscopy
• Basic experience in bioinformatics (UNIX environments, R/Python, etc.)

Desirable but not required/ Nice to have

• Experience in chromatin biology (ChIP-seq, ATAC, etc.)
• Experience in molecular phylogenetics and comparative genomics

Education and training

• A PhD in Biology (or related disciplines)

Languages

• English fluency

Competencies

• Highly developed organization and coordination skills
• Dedication, motivation, and rigor in scientific pursuits
• Capacity to work both independently and as part of a team

The Offer – Working Conditions

• Contract duration: Technical and scientific activities contract linked to the project (estimated duration 2 years, with possibility to extend it with external fellowships).
• Estimated annual gross salary: Salary is commensurate with qualifications and consistent with our pay scales.
• Target start date: February 2026.

We provide a highly stimulating environment with state-of-the-art infrastructures, and unique professional career development opportunities. To check out our training and development portfolio, please visit our website in the training section.

We offer and promote a diverse and inclusive environment and welcomes applicants regardless of age, disability, gender, nationality, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation or gender identity.

The CRG is committed to reconcile a work and family life of its employees and are offering extended vacation period and the possibility to benefit from flexible working hours.