Postdoctoral Research Associate - Skellam Lab

Postdoctoral Research Associate - The Skellam Lab

Employee Classification: Postdoctoral Research Associate

Campus: University of North Texas

Division: UNT-Provost

Subdivision-Department: UNT-College of Science

Department: UNT-Biological Sciences-121100

Job Location: Denton

Salary: Compensation is competitive and commensurate with the candidate's qualifications, experience, and discipline, in accordance with university guidelines and available funding.

FTE: 1.00

Retirement Eligibility: ORP Eligible

The Skellam lab at the University of North Texas is seeking a highly motivated and determined Postdoctoral Research Associate with experience in manipulating / engineering eukaryotic cytochrome P450 monooxygenases (P450s) for biotechnological use. This position will investigate the use of P450s as biocatalysts in Nicotinana benthamiana and / or filamentous fungi, testing approaches for enhancing interactions with redox partners, ensuring correct anchoring, and designing mutagenesis experiments to diversify substrate scope.

The project is highly interdisciplinary and will require knowledge and experience of molecular biology, fungal / plant cell biology, protein modelling, and analytical chemistry techniques. The successful candidate will join a team consisting of postdocs, research assistants, graduate and undergraduate students, in a highly collaborative environment. This project provides opportunities to learn additional techniques such as confocal microscopy, metabolic engineering, and natural product chemistry techniques.

Further responsibilities include the day‑to‑day management of the project, manuscript and proposal writing, presenting original research internally and externally at meetings and conferences, and mentoring students at the undergraduate and graduate level.

• Plan & conduct experiments in consultation with Dr. Skellam.
• Conduct experiments in accordance with all regulatory and safety policies.
• Make scientific observations; keep excellent records of data and interpretations.
• Prepare manuscripts for publication based on experimental results to submit to supervisor and publish.
• Prepare presentation or presentation materials of results in support of projects.
• Work effectively with others when appropriate.

• The candidate should have completed their PhD in biochemistry or a related field and have experience and interest in engineering P450 enzymes in eukaryotic hosts.
• Experience with molecular biology techniques such as gene cloning, plasmid construction, PCR, RT-PCR, Western blots and bioinformatic skills to aid in experimental design.
• Proficiency with protein structural predictions and protein purification.
• Ability to work independently.

• Experience with agrobacterium / protoplast-mediated transformation.
• Experience with molecular modelling / docking.
• A passion for developing biotechnology solutions.
• Good interpersonal skills and a team‑working attitude.
• Interest in training and mentoring students.

Physical Requirements: Communicating with others to exchange information.

Environmental Hazards: No adverse environmental conditions expected.

Work Schedule: Varies based on assignment.

Driving University Vehicle: No.

Security Sensitive: This is a Security Sensitive Position.

Benefits: For information regarding our benefits, .

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