Postdoctoral Scholar, Biological Design Unit (Frangedakis Group)

The Biological Design Unit researches across the fields of biology, physics, and engineering to understand the body designs of plants and insects.

In particular, as a section of the Biological Unit, the group led by Dr. Eftychios Frangedakis (SynBryo Group) works on the interface of evolutionary developmental biology (evo-devo) and plant synthetic biology. These disciplines mutually inform and complement one another: evo-devo reveals how developmental networks evolved and identifies conserved components that can guide plant engineering, while synthetic biology provides powerful tools, for cross-species comparisons and genome-scale screens that illuminate key evolutionary transitions. Our research focuses on elucidating the fundamental mechanisms governing chloroplast development and evolution, with the goal of enabling the rational engineering of chloroplast function to enhance plant productivity but also to establish chloroplasts as versatile platforms for bioproduction. To achieve this, we work with emerging model systems, particularly the liverwort Marchantia polymorpha and hornworts, which combine exceptional experimental tractability with evolutionary perspectives that extend beyond traditional plant models. More information on our research can be found here: https://synbryo.weebly.com/

We are looking for a motivated, capable, and considerate postdoctoral scholar to join our team to together create a unique research program on the intersection of chloroplast biology, evo-devo and synthetic biology. The project will address two key questions in chloroplast biology and evolution: how chloroplast division is regulated at the transcriptional level, and how plants evolved cells containing multiple chloroplasts. To tackle these questions, we will use, Marchantia polymorpha and our newly established hornwort model Anthoceros agrestis.  Ultimately, this knowledge will inform strategies to optimize chloroplasts both as efficient bioproduction platforms and as targets for enhancing photosynthetic performance.

We call for candidates with keen interests in our vision and with a strong background in any of the fields:

• plant synthetic biology
• plant evo-devo
• chloroplast biology
• bryophytes (e.g M. polymorpha)
• plant cell/developmental biology