Junior research scientist in microbial and cellular interactions

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INRAE presentation

INRAE, the French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food, and Environment, is a public research organization bringing together 12,000 employees across 272 units in 18 centers across France. As the world’s leading institute specializing in agriculture, food, and the environment, INRAE plays a key role in supporting the necessary transitions to address global challenges.

Faced with population growth, food security challenges, climate change, resource depletion, and biodiversity loss, INRAE is committed to developing scientific solutions and supporting the evolution of agricultural, food, and environmental practices.

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

Work environment, missions and activities

You will join the STLO Joint Research Unit (Science and Technology of Milk and Eggs, UMR1253, INRAE Institut Agro), which comprises around 140 people (including 80 permanent staff members). The STLO Joint Research Unit studies the components of milk and eggs, as well as their processing. By incorporating plant-based ingredients, the research seeks to find a better balance between animal and plant proteins and to reduce the environmental impact of food. In this way, it contributes to innovation in creating food that is safe, healthy, enjoyable, environmentally friendly, and tailored to the needs of specific populations. The STLO Joint Research Unit is divided into three research teams, and you will be part of the MicroBio team, which comprises around thirty people (25 permanent staff, including 13 scientists). The MicroBio team focuses on adaptive functions and interactions between bacteria, their environment, and the host. Its goal is to better understand these interactions to control and direct them toward specific functionalities related to the techno-functional, organoleptic, health, and nutritional qualities of food, as well as human and animal health and well-being. This research is conducted within the context of the dairy production chain to produce safe, sustainable, functional, and healthy fermented foods. Your work will focus on studying intercellular communication (bacteria-bacteria and bacteria-eukaryotic cells) mediated by bacterial extracellular vesicles. The goal is to identify the bacterial effectors involved and the signalling pathways activated, as well as to characterize the functions and molecular mechanisms governing intra- and interspecies interactions. Cross-kingdom interactions will be studied in vitro, in the context of bacterial-host interactions and human digestive inflammation, on intestinal epithelial cell models of varying complexity (from single to multicellular) and in vivo where necessary, in collaboration with partner teams. Initially, you will work on the role of extracellular vesicles produced by Propionibacterium freudenreichii, a technologically significant bacterium with probiotic properties (anti-inflammatory, protection of the epithelial barrier) in both intra- and interspecies communication. This work will contribute to the team’s research on the reasoned construction and management of bacterial communities for targeted functionalities and the development of innovative biotherapy approaches via postbiotics. You will benefit from a supportive environment for developing your research theme, with robust study models, adapted scientific, technical, and infrastructure resources, and a collaborative network rich in both academic and industrial partnerships. In addition, you will have the opportunity to participate in interdisciplinary projects (e.g., ANR, PIA4, PEPR), which use innovative approaches, especially in studying and exploiting extracellular vesicles for human health applications.

Training and skills

Competition open to candidates with a PhD (or equivalent). Training in microbiology, molecular biology, and/or cellular microbiology would be desirable, as well as experience in the field of extracellular vesicles and a good foundation in cell culture. Skills in bacterial physiology and metabolism, comparative and functional genomics, and the ability to acquire and analyze "omics" data would be highly appreciated. The successful candidate should have strong interpersonal skills, keen observation abilities, and a preference for teamwork. Candidates should have a good command of English (both written and spoken), and long-term international experience would also be desirable. Successful candidates who have not yet acquired this experience abroad will be required to do so after their probationary period (1st year).

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. 

How to apply

1. I download the applicant guide Application guidelines CRCN 2025 pdf - 3.93 MB
2. I write down the profile number CR-2025-MICA-1
3. I apply GO