The Prehna Lab is looking to recruit an outstanding graduate student (MSc or PhD position) to join the Department of Microbiology at the University of Manitoba,
+Canada (https://home.cc.umanitoba.ca/~prehnag/).
Our lab studies how bacteria communicate with their hosts, how they communicate with each other, and how they communicate with other micro-organisms.
Project: Quorum sensing in Streptococcus
The supported graduate student position will study the natural defense mechanisms that Streptococcus pyogenes uses to defend itself from anti-bacterial peptides. S.
+pyogenes is a major human pathogen responsible for Strep. Throat and flesh-eating disease that uses quorum sensing to coordinate gene expression within a human
+host. This social coordination is responsible for the up-regulation of enzymes that modify the bacterial cell wall and cell membrane to resist toxic anti-bacterial
+peptides secreted by the human host and competing bacteria. This project is aimed at understanding the biochemistry and structural biology of these defense enzymes
+in S. pyogenes with the goal of designing novel antibiotics.
Qualifications
Applicants should possess s Bachelor’s degree in the life sciences or a related discipline, and be interested in both biochemistry and microbiology. Some experience
+in molecular biology as well as protein expression and purification is desired but not required. Training in protein purification, X-ray crystallography, and NMR
+spectroscopy will be provided. This project has the potential for training in cryo-EM. English language skills, the ability to work in a team, willingness to
+learn, and good organizational skills are required.
Application
Applications should include:
1. The applicant’s CV
2. A one-page summary of their motivation for pursing graduate studies
3. Contact details for at least two references
Please send application materials to:
gerd.prehna@umanitoba.ca
The starting dates are Fall 2020 or January 2021.
The University of Manitoba (http://umanitoba.ca/) is located in Winnipeg, Manitoba and is Western Canada’s first University. The University has large core-group of
+structural biology and biochemical researchers between the departments of Microbiology (http://www.sci.umanitoba.ca/microbiology/) and Chemistry (The Manitoba
+Group in Protein Structure and Function), access to the Canadian Light Source synchrotron, and comprehensive molecular biophysics instrumentation (500 and 600 MHz
+NMR, in-house XRD, ITC, CD, DSC, nanoDSF, AUC, DLS, SEC-MALS, and MST). Winnipeg is also home to the National Microbiology Laboratory, a leader in infectious
+disease research and collaborator with the Department of Microbiology.