Temporary position OT-28819
Fixed-term contract in immunology
nante
INRAE presentation
The French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food, and Environment (INRAE) is a major player in research and innovation. It is a community of 12,000 people with 272 research, experimental research, and support units located in 18 regional centres throughout France. Internationally, INRAE is among the top research organisations in the agricultural and food sciences, plant and animal sciences, as well as in ecology and environmental science. It is the world’s leading research organisation specialising in agriculture, food and the environment. INRAE’s goal is to be a key player in the transitions necessary to address major global challenges. Faced with a growing world population, climate change, resource scarcity, and declining biodiversity, the Institute has a major role to play in building solutions and supporting the necessary acceleration of agricultural, food and environmental transitions.
Work environment, missions and activities
Work environment, missions and activities
You will be welcomed in the unit BIA (Biopolymers, interactions, Assembly) located in Nantes (France). The unit, composed of around one hundred permanent staff members and more than fifty temporary staff members, is divided into eight teams. You will work within the Allergy team, whose objective is to better understand the factors involved in the development and severity of food allergies. You will be supervised by Marie-Hélène Ropers, project manager and Grégory Bouchaud, Senior scientist.
Food allergies affect more and more people. They are linked to dysfunction of the immune system, reduced diversity of the intestinal microbiota, and alteration of the intestinal barrier. Multiple factors have been suggested to explain this increase. Among them, exposure to environmental contaminants (the exposome) is a hypothesis studied in the Plapotemix project. The aim of this project is to understand the role of microplastics in the transport of contaminants and their effects on health. The first part of the project consisted of building and characterizing assemblies between contaminants. The second part focuses on studying health effects using in vitro and in vivo models. Your contribution starts from there.
You will be responsible for evaluating how this cocktail of contaminants, consumed chronically in food, contributes to the development and severity of food allergy in a murine model. You will mainly be in charge of implementing and carrying out the animal protocols and disseminating the results, and you will also contribute to the scientific, technical, and administrative management of the animal facility. You will interact with project partners and disseminate your results through various channels: conferences, project meetings, publications, and seminars.
Your main mission will be to evaluate in vivo the impact of exposure to environmental contaminants on the development of allergy. You will be more specifically in charge of:
- Designing and managing mouse experimental protocols including preparation of regulatory submissions, experimental design and planning (human resources, scheduling), animal monitoring, and performing technical procedures on animals (anaesthesia, surgery, injections, sample collections, dissections);
- Performing biological analyses on samples collected from animals including immunochemical assays (ELISA, Western blot), physiological analyses (intestinal permeability), histology and flow cytometry;
- Analysing and interpreting experimental data;
- Performing regular literature reviews to stay up-to-date with scientific developments in the field;
- Writing experimental reports and contributing to scientific publications;
- Presenting your results within the team, to partners, and at international conferences;
- Supervising technical staff involved in the project;
- Training and providing technical support to temporary staff;
- Monitoring project milestones and deliverables in line with the objectives in the project;
- Ensuring that experiments are conducted within the allocated project budget.
As a user of the animal facility, you will also:
- Contribute to the management of the facility, supporting the animal facility manager;
- Participate in equipment management (maintenance and monitoring);
- Participate in the Animal Welfare Body (AWB) of the facility.
Deadline to apply: 30th April 2026
After reception of applications, the candidates who most closely match the ideal profile will be interviewed in person or via videoconference. A visit of our lab can be done at this time.
Special conditions of activity:
Training and skills
Training and skills sought
Recommended training: M/F with a Ph-D
Desired knowledge: biology, immunology, certification in animal experimentation (designer level), animal husbandry (behaviour, physiology, anatomy), as well as a solid understanding of the theoretical foundations and techniques in cell biology and immunochemistry (ELISA, flow cytometry, Western blot). A good command of spoken and written English is required (minimum B2 level).
Appreciated experience: flow cytometry, ELISA, animal experimentation
Skills: organization, rigor, autonomy, teamwork, communication skills, ability to synthesize information, critical thinking, strong writing skills, initiative, and the ability to anticipate.
INRAE's life quality
By joining our teams, you benefit from (depending on the type of contract and its duration):
- up to 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.
How to apply
I send my CV and my motivation letter
All persons employed by or hosted at INRAE, a public research establishment, are subject to the Civil Service Code, particularly with regard to the obligation of neutrality and respect for the principle of secularism. In carrying out their functions, whether or not they are in contact with the public, they must not express their religious, philosophical or political convictions through their behaviour or by what they wear. > Find out more: fonction publique.gouv.fr website (in French)