Junior research scientist in physiology of the endocrine function of the intestine

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INRAE presentation

The French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food, and the Environment (INRAE) is a public research establishment under the dual authority of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Research.

INRAE is recruiting researchers by open competition and offering permanent position.

It is a major player in research and innovation created on 1^st of January 2020. INRAE is a research institute resulting from the merger of INRA and IRSTEA. It is a community of 12,000 people with more than 200 research units and 42 experimental units located throughout France.

The institute is among the world leaders in agricultural and food sciences, in plant and animal sciences, and is 11^th in the world in ecology and environment. INRAE’s main goal is to be a key player in the transitions necessary to address major global challenges. In the face of the increase in population, climate change, scarcity of resources and decline in biodiversity, the institute develops solutions for multiperformance agriculture, high quality food and sustainable management of resources and ecosystems.

Work environment, missions and activities

The Joint Research Unit Herbivores, located on the Theix site in Saint-Genès-Champanelle near Clermont-Ferrand, conducts research into economically and environmentally efficient herbivore farming, making use of forage and other resources not used for human consumption. Within this UMR, you will be part of the "Biomarkers of performance, adaptation and quality" team, which is composed of about twenty permanent staff from INRAE and Bordeaux ScienceAgro. The team's research aims to identify the metabolic and physiological mechanisms controlling the plasticity of the tissues that determine ruminant production, efficiency and adaptive responses, and to design tools for phenotyping production and product quality traits.

The objective of your research project will be to study gut physiology, and in particular the endocrine function of the gut, in cattle and its relationship with feed intake and nutrient partitioning at the whole body level. This knowledge will allow the identification of practices to maximise efficiency and optimise the use of resources by animals in order to meet the challenges of the agroecological transition of livestock farms.

First, you will generate an atlas of intestinal protein secretions and the receptors for these secretions expressed by the target peripheral tissues. Secondly, you will evaluate the relationships between the plasma abundance of a selection of proteins secreted by the intestine and the feed efficiency and performance phenotypes of dairy and beef cattle. The challenge will be to identify, on the one hand, biomarkers of phenotypes as a function of breeding methods and, on the other hand, levers to modulate phenotypes. Finally, in a third phase, you will develop in vitro approaches to study and understand the mechanisms of action of intestinal biomarker proteins on key tissues in cattle production (liver, muscle, adipose tissue, mammary gland). In the longer term, you will be able to integrate the relationships between the endocrine function of the gut and the microbiota that this organ hosts.

Training and skills

Candidates must have a PhD or equivalent
Skills in animal physiology and endocrinology are required. Skills in the use of bioinformatics and biostatistics tools for omics analysis are expected. Animal experimentation is required for the conduct of the work. Ability to work in a team and to interact with physiologists, bioinformaticians and mathematicians will be highly appreciated.
Fluency in English is highly desirable as well as long-term international experience: laureates who have not yet had such experience will be required to undertake a stay abroad at the end of the internship year.

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INRAE's life quality

By joining our teams, you benefit from:

- 30 days of annual leave + 15 days "Reduction of Working Time" (for a full time);
- parenting support: CESU childcare, leisure services;
- skills development systems: training, career advise;
- social support: advice and listening, social assistance and loans;
- holiday and leisure services: holiday vouchers, accommodation at preferential rates;
- sports and cultural activities;
- collective catering.

For international scientists: please visit your guide to facilitate your arrival and stay at INRAE.