Have you ever wondered how organisms that do not control body temperature can survive (and grow!) in the ice of North pole, the peaks of Himalaya or (probably) Mars too? How will these organisms preserve their molecular systems in the face of global warming? The group of Oriol Gallego (UPF) opens a 4-year PhD position to investigate the physical principles that underlie the adaptation of molecular systems in the cryosphere (regions of the earth where water is frozen) and the impact of climate change. The student will contribute to develop an advanced imaging pipeline to obtain quantitative measurements in non-conventional yeast species. The project might include filed trips to isolate yeast species from high-altitude mountains, Patagonia, etc. Some of the imaging techniques employed are Single Molecule Localization Microscopy (SMLM), particle tracking and cryo-electron tomography (cryo-ET).

We now have the computational and gene-editing power to enter in a new era in biological imaging. For instance, our lab pioneered cell engineering and advanced livecell imaging to resolve molecular architectures in vivo with up to 2 nm precision (Picco et al, 2017, Cell; Irastorza-Azcarate et al, 2019, Structure; Hernández et al, 2024, NAR GAB). In collaboration with the groups of Daniel Castaño-Díez (Biofisika Institute, Spain) we continue pushing the limits of microscopy to investigate molecular systems in situ (Puigtintó, 2025, bioRxiv). We are looking for a student willing to join us in implementing these advanced imaging tools in the search for new biology. The PhD student will develop culturing and gene-editing approaches that allow us to perform structural cell biology in unexplored fungi species that live in the cryosphere. The student will extract mechanistic insight from advanced microscopy data, aiming to uncover the physical principles of cellular adaptation to environmental fluctuations associated with climate change.

The student will join an international team (the group currently hosts 10 researchers from 6 different countries) developing imaging techniques at the frontier between cell biology and physics. Our lab is located at the PRBB, one of the strongest scientific campuses in south Europe with state-of-the-art research facilities.

If you are interested, please send a short cover letter, your CV and the contact details of 2 referees to recruitment.melis@upf.edu (please indicate “Application to PhD in Evolutionary Cell Biophysics” in the subject).

Deadline: until the position is filled or end of May 2025

Starting date: Summer 2025 – end of September 2025