Doctoral student (m/f/d) in the field of Plant Nutrition

The position is part of the externally funded project "Novel sampling for studying the role of carboxylate exudates for the phosphorus acquisition efficiency of durum wheat" and is to be filled on a fixed-term basis in accordance with § 2 WissZeitVG and § 72 HessHG with the opportunity for own academic qualification at the Chair of Plant Nutrition, Department of Plant Nutrition at the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Nutritional Sciences, and Environmental Management. The salary is in accordance with the collective labour agreement of the State of Hessen (E 13 TV-H).

As long as the maximum permissible duration of a fixed-term contract is not exceeded, you will be employed for a period of 3 years.

Your research project

Carboxylate root exudates (e.g. citrate, malate) play an important role in solubilizing phosphorus from soil for plant uptake. However, sampling root exudates from plant roots growing in soil is challenging, as exudates are quickly mineralized by soil microbes. In this project, a novel exudate sampling technique will be developed, allowing for exudate sampling from soil-grown plant roots for prolonged periods, largely avoiding mineralization. This work is based on previous method development in our group (https://doi.org/10.1093/jxb/erab123), and will be conducted in close collaboration with research partners at the University of Bozen, Italy. A doctoral student position is to be filled for this project, focusing on exudate sampling method development and evaluation.

Your tasks at a glance

• Development, implementation and evaluation of novel techniques for sampling carboxylate substances in the rhizosphere

• Implementation of all related laboratory and greenhouse experiments

• Data evaluation and interpretation

• Supervision of project related bachelor and master theses

• Presentation of research results at scientific meetings and publication in scientific journals

You want to break new ground with us?

Apply via our online form by March 26th, 2024, indicating reference number 258/09. We look forward to receiving your application.