Listeria monocytogenes is a food-born pathogen, able to grow at both low and high temperatures, and causes a serious food poisoning called listeriosis even from properly refrigerated foods. The European Food Safety authority (ESFA) has identified L. monocytogenes as one of three most serious food hazards to public health. Under anaerobic conditions, L. monocytogenes can transfer electrons out of the cell to redox balance its fermentative metabolism. It has been shown that this extracellular electron transport (EET) is important for survival and virulence of L. monocytogenes and hence the proteins involved in EET provide a promising target space for new antibiotics.

In this PhD project, the candidate will join a friendly, creative and interdisciplinary research team that studies the molecular mechanisms of bacterial respiration and develops novel antibiotics. The PhD student will learn and apply a range of biochemical and biophysical approaches to discover the molecular pathway of electron transfer in L. monocytogenes and select inhibitors against selected proteins of this pathway to validate EET as a potential antibiotic target. Besides the cloning, expression and purification of key proteins in the EET pathway, the candidate will develop activity assays to confirm hypothesized functions in oxidoreduction and membrane transport, and use single-particle cryoEM to elucidate the molecular structure, mode of action and inhibition. These results will provide the necessary foundation for future antibiotic development.

Qualifications 

1. You have a MSc degree in Biochemistry, Chemistry, Biophysics or related discipline with a focus on and a passion for macromolecular biochemistry;
2. You have excellent proficiency in English and the ability to concisely report research progress at team meetings;
3. You enjoy working in a team;
4. You have experience with protein purification and characterisation.