CDD Post-doc in yeast evolutionary genomics (M/F)

CNRS; France; On-site; EUR 42,000 - 54,000; Full time

Job summary

CNRS, Institut de Recherche sur le Cancer et le Vieillissement in Nice, invites a post-doctoral fellow to join Dr Gianni LITI's Population Genomics and Complex Traits team on the EDGES project. The role combines experimental and computational work to understand how foreign DNA enters yeast cells and its evolutionary consequences.

The successful candidate will design synthetic systems, apply long-read sequencing, and collaborate with Sorbonne Université and Institut Pasteur to advance our

Qualifications

• Experience in yeast genetics essential.
• Advanced bioinformatics and strong statistics essential.
• Experience with experimental evolution, synthetic biology or genome engineering is desirable.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement experiments to study natural DNA uptake in yeast.
• Develop synthetic mating systems to enable interspecies hybridisation.
• Perform long-read sequencing and phenotyping across yeast life cycle.
• Collaborate with partners on multi-omics analyses (transcriptomics, proteomics).
• Work within a multi-team consortium across institutions.

Skills

Yeast genetics

Genomics

Bioinformatics

Statistical analysis

Collaborative teamwork

Education

PhD in relevant field

Tools

CRISPR/Cas9

Flow cytometry

Microscopy

Nanopore sequencing

Job description

Organisation/Company CNRS Department Institut de Recherche sur le Cancer et le Vieillissement, Nice Research Field Biological sciences Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Application Deadline 9 Nov 2026 - 23:59 (UTC) Country France Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 35 Offer Starting Date 1 Dec 2026 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

The post-doc will contribute to the ANR project EDGES (Evolving genomes beyond species boundaries), which investigates how genomes acquire, assimilate and evolve large amounts of foreign and extra-self DNA (fsDNA) in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The post-doc will lead work on the natural uptake of environmental DNA, the reprogramming of mating to enable interspecies hybridisation, and the adaptive potential of fsDNA through experimental evolution. The post-doc will also collaborate on other projects currently ongoing in the group ( https://ircan.org/en/research/gianni-liti ).

The post-doc will perform both experimental and computational analyses to determine how foreign DNA enters yeast cells, how it is maintained, and what its phenotypic and evolutionary consequences are. Main tasks:

• Design and use of a synthetic mini linear yeast artificial chromosome with a fluorescent reporter to measure natural DNA uptake across genetic backgrounds and ecologically relevant conditions, including cell sorting, transcriptomics and GWAS-based mapping of the genetic determinants of natural competence
• Engineering of a synthetic mating system to overcome prezygotic barriers and enable hybridisation and cytoduction between S. cerevisiae and distant non-Saccharomyces species, monitored at the single-cell level by fluorescence and time-lapse microscopy
• Adaptive laboratory evolution of strains carrying foreign or extra-self DNA under stress (e.g. high temperature, osmotic stress), with long-read Nanopore sequencing to follow fsDNA dynamics
• Phenotyping across the yeast life cycle (growth, mating, sporulation, quiescence, ageing) and testing of reproductive isolation between evolved and ancestral lineages
• Multi-omics characterisation (long-read sequencing, chromatin conformation capture, transcriptomics, proteomics) of evolved clones, in collaboration with the consortium partners (Sorbonne Université and Institut Pasteur)

The postdoctoral fellow will be assigned to Dr Gianni LITI's team "Population genomics and complex traits". The team is one of the founding teams of IRCAN and is located at the Faculty of Medicine of Nice. The team has all the necessary equipment for yeast genetics and genomics experiments and has access to state-of-the‑art microscopy, cytometry and genomics facilities as well as computing and storage servers. The work will be carried out within the EDGES consortium, in close collaboration with the teams of Gilles Fischer (Sorbonne Université) and Romain Koszul (Institut Pasteur).

• Previous experience in yeast genetics and genomics is essential
• Advanced knowledge of bioinformatics analysis of next‑generation sequencing data and a strong statistical background are essential
• Experience in experimental evolution, synthetic biology or genome engineering (e.g. CRISPR/Cas9), flow cytometry/cell sorting, microscopy, and long‑read sequencing is desired
• Good communication skills and the ability to work within a multi‑team consortium