The focus of this collaborative project is to identify essential components of the thiol metabolism in the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum.

Using state-of-the-art CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing and biochemical methods, you will:

• Systematically generate and analyze inducible knockout parasite lines
• Assess the essentiality of central enzymes of the thiol redox metabolism
• Characterize non-lethal knockout cell lines through confocal microscopy and biochemical assays.

While genes from lethal knockout attempts will be considered for future intervention strategies, interesting phenotypes of non-lethal knockout cell lines will provide crucial insights regarding the relevance of the parasite's thiol metabolism for the synthesis of DNA or iron-sulfur clusters as well as the conversion and detoxification of redox metabolites.

We are looking for highly motivated candidates who bring:

• A scientific completed university degree in science in molecular/cellular biology or biochemistry
• Fluency in written and spoken English and/or German
• Strong enthusiasm for hands-on laboratory work
• Ability to work independently and in a team
• A passion for solving scientific puzzles and applying critical thinking