1 PhD Scholarship in Animal Genetics, Bioinformatics and Breeding in Denmark | University of Copenhagen

This PhD project is part of the larger MetaPig project designed to elucidate how modulations of the pig gut microbiota may increase feed efficiency and gut health. The PhD project will focus on identification of host genetic factors shaping the microbiota diversity and on genetic mechanisms and interactions between host and microbiota of importance for gut health and nutrient absorption. The project comprises two major parts. Both exploit a large cohort of pigs in which individual feed efficiency has been registered and the microbiota has been characterized via microbiome sequencing. One part is focused on next-generation RNA sequencing and Fluidigm qPCR to characterize the gut epithelium transcriptome profile. Based on this data, gene co-expression network analysis will be carried out to identify genes and major signaling pathways of importance for microbiota assembly, feed efficiency and gut health. Another part focuses on a genome wide association study to identify loci in the pig genome with effect on gut epithelium gene expression, microbiota composition, feed efficiency and gut health.

The candidate will primarily focus on:

• Transcriptome and genome analysis
• GWAS
• RNA and DNA sequence analysis, bioinformatics
• Teaching, scientific writing, information dissemination

Required qualifications

• A master’s in veterinary science, molecular biology or a similar subject area related to the project
• Prior experience in GWAS and bioinformatics
• Knowledge in animal genetics and microbiome analysis
• Motivation and excellent scientific skills are essential
• Good communication skills both oral and written
• Fluency in English
• Preferably, scientific publications documenting the above mentioned qualifications

The successful candidate is also required to be enterprising and to possess good interpersonal skills.

Terms of employment

The positions are available for a 3-year period for applicants holding a relevant master’s degree or for a 4-year period for applicants who are already enrolled or are accepted to be enrolled at one of the Faculty’s master’s programmes.

At the time of commencement, applicants for the 4-year period must have approximately one year of study remaining before graduating from their MSc programme.