[Denmark] PhD Fellowship in Natural Products Chemistry at the University of Southern Denmark

“Production and use of Artemisia annua against parasites and bacterial diseases in poultry stocks” is a four years project supported by The Programme Commission on Health, Food, and Welfare under The Danish Council for Strategic Research. An important goal of the project is to test, document and develop prototype products based on bioactive compounds from the medicinal plant Artemisia annua (Sweet wormwood) for the treatment of parasitic and bacterial diseases in poultry. The purpose is further to develop a cost efficient cultivation of genetically optimized A. annua as a new Danish pharm-crop, including development of bioassays for the determination of bioactivity, and develop methods for the quantification of bioactive compounds in extracts, biofluids, and tissue.

The project involves close interaction between several research groups with expertise spanning from plant cultivation and isolation of bioactive compounds to testing in different cellular and animal models. Several Ph.D. students and post-docs are associated with the project. We now invite applications for a Ph.D. fellowship within the topic “Characterisation of bioactive compounds in Artemisia annua and development of standardised prototypes to be used against parasite and bacterial infections in poultry”

The work programme on the Ph.D. fellowship will be focused on the following areas:

• (i) Isolation and characterisation of anti-parasitic and anti-microbial compounds in A. annua by bioassay-guided fractionation and advanced spectroscopic techniques, respectively.

• (ii) Development of analytical methods for the analysis of bioactive compounds in plant extracts, biofluids and tissue.

• (iii) Investigation of the effect of genotype cultivation, and seasonal variation on the content of bioactive compounds in A. annua.

The candidate should have qualifications required for working on natural products chemistry, and should have experience with isolation of organic compounds using column chromatography and HPLC as well as experience with identification of organic compounds by spectroscopic methods such as NMR and mass spectrometry. It is important that candidates have not already obtained a Ph.D. degree. In addition, emphasis will be on good skills to communicate and collaborate as well as to function in a research team across institutions and research disciplines.

Application, salary, etc

Engagement as a Ph.D. Research Fellow is for three years. Employment stops automatically at the end of the period. The holder of the Fellowship is not allowed to have other paid employment during the three-year period.

Contact person: Head of Department, Professor Lars Porskjær Christensen, Institute of Chemical Engineering, Biotechnology and Environmental Technology, University of Southern Denmark, telephone: +45 6550 7361, e-mail lpc@kbm.sdu.dk.

Employment is governed by the Protocol on PhD Research Fellows signed by the Danish Ministry of Finance and AC (the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations) on October 1, 2008, enclosure 5.

The University encourages all interested persons to apply, regardless of age, gender, religious affiliation, or ethnic background.

The application is to be made by using the faculty application form:

http://www.sdu.dk/~/media/8AAD750D0392433AB00C54414F575A31.ashx

Please send 3 copies of the application and enclosures marked with the job ID to the address below. Enclosures must include a short description of research experience and motivation for application (max three pages) as well as a CV with list of publications, copies of diploma etc. and copies of max three publications (if available) marked in publication list. Additional information may be requested, and the application process may include an interview before the final decision is made. Please note that applications send by e-mail will not be taken into consideration.

Employment starts: 1 July, 2009
Closing date 1 May, 2009 at 12 noon
Location: Odense

Mark application Job ID 094053 and send it to:

Det Tekniske Fakultetssekretariat
Syddansk Universitet
Campusvej 55
5230 Odense M