CSIRO Postdoctoral Fellowship in Environmental Metabolomics

Acknowledgement of Country

CSIRO acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land, sea and waters, of the area that we live and work on across Australia. We acknowledge their continuing connection to their culture and pay our respects to their Elders past and present. View our vision towards reconciliation

Child Safety

CSIRO is committed to the safety and wellbeing of all children and young people involved in our activities and programs. View our Child Safe Policy.

The Opportunity

• Do you have a PhD in Biochemistry, Bioanalytical Chemistry, Environmental (Analytical) Chemistry or Environmental Science?
• Access state of the art technologies and bioinformatics techniques
• Exciting 3-year postdoctoral role working across multiple CSIRO laboratories

CSIRO Early Research Career (CERC) Postdoctoral Fellowships provide opportunities to scientists and engineers who have completed their doctorate and have less than three years of relevant postdoctoral work experience. These fellowships aim to develop the next generation of future leaders of the innovation system.

Our lack of knowledge about the risks and effects of most chemicals in the environment hinders decision-making and protection of ecosystems. Current monitoring approaches are insufficient and do not consider the cumulative effects of multiple stressors or the long-term impact on wildlife. To address this, omics-based (environmental metabolomics) approaches will be used to monitor wildlife and assess chemical mixture risks using a freshwater turtle model. These tools will aim to quantify biological responses to contaminants and provide insight into gene and protein disruptions. This information will be tailored to inform future monitoring activities, establish thresholds for chemical mixtures, and facilitate predictive models for adverse health outcomes in ecosystems that environmental regulators can easily use and implement.

The CERC Fellow will have the opportunity to work across multiple CSIRO laboratories, in addition to working at collaborator institutions (national environmental regulators and international institutes). This will ensure the CERC Fellow has access to state-of-the-art high throughput technologies and bioinformatics techniques in the field of systems biology and environmental omics. This will help broaden the Fellow’s experiences and develop deeper professional networks. The collaborative nature of the project provides a unique opportunity for the Fellow to become engaged with various scientific, cultural, and organizational structures, enabling them to become a multi-disciplinary leader.

Your duties will include:

• Helping lead the initiation, design, and execution of field-based sampling, environmental metabolomics and whole-organism assessments of the impacts of chemical mixtures on freshwater turtles.
• Contributing to the development of environmental pollution bioindicators, toxicity thresholds, and novel organism health monitoring technologies.
• Working in close collaboration with state environmental regulators and other stakeholders to maximise research impact.
• Carrying out innovative, impactful research of strategic importance to CSIRO that will, where possible, lead to novel and important scientific outcomes.
• Recognising and exploiting opportunities for innovation and the generation of new theoretical perspectives, and progress opportunities for the further development or creation of new lines of research.

To be considered you will need:

• A doctorate (or will shortly satisfy the requirements of a PhD) in a relevant discipline area, such as Biochemistry, Bioanalytical Chemistry, Environmental (Analytical) Chemistry or Environmental Science. Please note: To be eligible for this role you must have no more than 3 years (full-time equivalent) of postdoctoral research experience.
• Extensive hands-on experience using mass spectrometry instrumentation (e.g. Agilent, Sciex, etc.) with various mass analysers (i.e., QqQ, Q-ToF, etc.) for targeted and global analysis of metabolites and lipids.
• Expertise in the identification and validation of unknown metabolites and lipids.
• Capable of developing isolation, enrichment, and purification strategies for both rare and less stable analytes in multiple biological matrices.
• Extended use of databases and software tools for expedited data analysis (e.g. MS-DIAL, LIPID MAPS).

For full details about this role please view the Position Description

Eligibility

Applications for this position are open to Australian/New Zealand Citizens, Australian Permanent Residents or you must either hold, or be able to obtain, a valid working visa for the duration of the specified term. Appointment to this role is subject to provision of a national police check and may be subject to other security/medical/character requirements.

Flexible Working Arrangements

We work flexibly at CSIRO, offering a range of options for how, when and where you work. 

Diversity and Inclusion

We are working hard to recruit people representing the diversity across our society, and ensure that all our people feel supported to do their best work and feel empowered to let their ideas flourish. 

About CSIRO

At CSIRO Australia's national science agency, we solve the greatest challenges through innovative science and technology. We put the safety and wellbeing of our people above all else and earn trust everywhere because we only deal in facts. We collaborate widely and generously and deliver solutions with real impact. 

CSIRO is committed to values-based leadership to inspire performance and unlock the potential of our people.

Join us and start creating tomorrow today!

How to Apply

Please apply on-line and provide a cover letter and CV that best demonstrate your motivation and ability to meet the requirements of this role.