法国国家农业研究所博士后招聘

Postdoctoral position in biological system analysis, modeling and simulation : Modeling the protein and amino acid metabolism in the body and application in nutrition and health (ModProtMetab) : Paris, France

Subject: ModProtMetab: Modeling the protein and amino acid metabolism in the body and application in nutrition and health
Skills required: Matlab, computational biology, modeling and simulation, metabolism and nutrition (preferably)
Location: Paris, France

• The research proposal
  Title: ModProtMetab: Modeling the protein and amino acid metabolism by compartmental analysis of 15N natural abundance data for studying the inter- and intra-organ nitrogen fluxes and their dysregulations during the metabolic syndrome
  Description: This project aims to develop a mechanistic and dynamic, multi-compartmental model of the complex system of protein and amino acid metabolism, which distinguishes the various nitrogen (N) pools in the body and describes the N transfers between them in both healthy and diet-induced pre-pathological conditions such as the metabolic syndrome. The model will be developed under Matlab (with the Simbiology toolbox), using a set of experimental data on the natural abundances of stable N isotopes (δ15N) in the different body N pools previously obtained by our group in rats under different nutritional (e.g., rats fed with dietary proteins of varied quality) and pathophysiological conditions (e.g., rats that had or not become obese and insulin-resistant after being chronically fed a high-fat diet). The body δ15N values, which have been only recently investigated in nutrition and health, can sign the relative amplitudes of the different metabolic N fluxes and their nutritional and pathophysiological variations. δ15N values indeed vary among N pools within an individual, and these differences are linked to the structural and functioning characteristics of N metabolism and reflect the partition values between the different N fluxes at the metabolic branchpoints. δ15N values vary also among individuals, according to how their N fluxes are differentially modulated in response to their specific nutritional and pathophysiological conditions. The present project aims to develop a model that accounts for the observed δ15N variability for inferring and better characterizing the various body N transfers between and within tissues. This model will provide a new and integrated insight into the complex interactions between the various body N fluxes, for understanding how they are coordinated and controlled to ensure the body N homeostasis or are progressively dysregulated during diet-induced metabolic syndrome.
  Disciplines: Biological system analysis, modeling and simulation – Computational Biology – ODE and dynamical systems – Metabolism, biological basis of metabolism related disorders – Nutrition and health
  Keywords: Compartmental modeling – Models of nutritional and metabolic systems – Protein and amino acids metabolism – Natural isotopic abundances (δ15N) – Isotopic fractionation– Matlab – Metabolic syndrome

• Required skills and eligibility criteria
  Required experience and skills: The hosted fellow should have a PhD in a relevant discipline (computational biology, biological system modeling and simulation) with an experience or a strong interest in biological data analysis and their application in metabolism, physiology, nutrition and health. The applicant fellow is also expected to have competences and expertise in programming and modeling with Matlab, and possibly in model parameter estimation by mathematical optimization.
  Additional eligibility criteria: having a PhD (or PhD will have been awarded by mobility start date); having less than 7 years' research experience after the PhD; Not having spent more than 12 months in France within the last 3 years immediately prior to the expected date of recruitment ; Be able to write and speak fluent English or French; Having at least 1 publication in an inter-disciplinary or specialised peer-reviewed journal; Having 1 publication in an inter-disciplinary or specialised peer-reviewed journal per 2 years of post-doctorate period (patents count as publications) taking into account any non-research career breaks.

• Hosting organization –Salary and duration – Contact person
  Organization: INRA (French National Agricultural Research Institute) and AgroParisTech (French Graduate School in Technology for Life, Food and Environmental Sciences)
  Research Unit: Unit 914 INRA-AgroParisTech PNCA (Nutrition Physiology and Ingestive Behavior)- Team "Proteins, amino acid metabolism and prevention of the metabolic syndrome"
  Location: AgroParisTech (located in the center of Paris, Latin Quarter): 16 rue Claude Bernard, 75005 Paris, France
  Hosting conditions: Within a large research department, the recruited post-doc will work in a dynamic research team (5 researchers, 3 PhD students) having a long and well-recognized scientific and technical experience in the domain of the research project. He/She will be provided with computer and relevant software; the experimental data required for this modeling project (which are owned by our research team); and preliminary work and results about the compartmental analysis of these data (from a previous PhD thesis in our team). The hosted fellow will particularly work in close interaction with Helene Fouillet (Researcher, INRA), with strong experience in integrative modeling of protein and amino acids metabolism in relation with its nutritional modulations and pathophysiological dysregulations.
  Salary: Total gross salary of 3860 €/month : basic gross salary of 2500 €/month (granted) + additional mobility allowance of 1360 €/month (subject to acceptance by a jury)
  Dates: Expected starting date: by the end of 2014 (negotiable), for a duration of 18 to 24 months
  How to aply / Contact person: Interested applicants should send a cover letter (describing their research interests and motivation for the position), and a detailed CV (with research experience, scientific and technical skills, publication and conference presentation list, and the contact information of at least two references) to Helene Fouillet (helene.fouillet@agroparistech.fr) with subject line “ModProtMetab Postdoc application”….