Marie Curie PhD in

Fungal Cell Biology

3-year PhD fellowship at the University of Nice-Sophia Antipolis, France
We are seeking a motivated and enthusiastic student for doctoral thesis research
on the molecular mechanisms of polarized growth and cell morphogenesis in both
the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and human pathogenic yeast Candida
albicans. The project will start in 2014 and is directed at understanding the roles of
a range of G-proteins and phospholipids in external-signal mediated polarized
growth including during the mating process and the yeast to filamentous growth
transition. This work will be carried out at the CNRS/INSERM Institute of Biology
Valrose in Nice, France (http://ibv.unice.fr/EN/equipe/arkowitz.php). A range of
cell biological, molecular, and biochemical techniques will be used, in addition to
state of the art live-cell imaging methods, taking advantage of extensive on site communal microscopy facilities. The project is part of a Marie Curie ITN consortium
of 12 European academic and industrial laboratories working at the forefront of
fungal research on a project entitled Sensing and integration of signals governing
cell polarity and tropism in fungi (FUNGIBRAIN) and will provide extensive training opportunities.
See http://www.inflammation-repair.manchester.ac.uk/FungiBrain
Candidates should have a Masters degree or equivalent in a relevant field, including cell biology,
biochemistry, microbiology, molecular biology, or genetics and have laboratory experience
working with microorganisms. Motivation, enthusiasm and ability to communicate in English
and interact with lab members are critical. Candidates must not have resided in France for more
than 12 months in the past 3 years.

A generous salary and mobility allowance will be provided for 3 years.

To apply: Candidates should send a motivation letter and a curriculum vitae with names
and contact information for 2 referees to:
Rob Arkowitz (arkowitz@unice.fr) and Martine Bassilana (mbassila@unice.fr).
Corvest, Bogliolo, Follette, Arkowitz & Bassilana. Spatiotemporal regulation of Rho1 and Cdc42 activity during Candida albicans filamentous growth. Mol. Microbiol. 2013, 89: 626-48.
Guillas, Vernay, Vitagliano & Arkowitz. Phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate is required for invasive growth in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. J. Cell Sci. 2013, 126: 3602-14.
Vernay, Schaub, Guillas, Bassilana & Arkowitz. A steep phosphoinositide-bis-phosphate gradient forms during fungal filamentous growth. J. Cell. Biol. 2012 198: 711-30.