Doctoral Researcher / project researcher (Biology, Tick Research)
About this role
The Faculty of Science at the University of Turku is inviting applications for a 2-year doctoral researcher/project researcher position at the Department of Biology. The employment will begin on 1 September 2026 or as agreed.
The tick research group at the University of Turku ( ) has been studying the biology of ticks and tick-borne pathogens of public health importance for nearly fifteen years. As part of this work, the first laboratory population of ticks in the Nordic countries was established at the University of Turku in 2023. The recruited doctoral researcher will participate in a Research Council of Finland-funded project investigating changes in tick gene expression caused by Borrelia infection and parasitism by the tick wasp Ixodiphagus hookeri .
Job description
The doctoral project will consist of sub-studies examining what kinds of changes are induced in ticks by different Borrelia bacteria causing Lyme disease, as well as by parasitism by I. hookeri , in both sheep ticks ( Ixodes ricinus ) and taiga ticks ( I. persulcatus ). Duties include in vitro feeding of ticks, maintaining tick populations, infecting ticks with Borrelia bacteria, and exposing them to parasitism by I. hookeri . After feeding and treatments, RNA will be extracted from samples, and transcriptome-level changes will be studied using high-throughput sequencing and bioinformatics. The work is done in cooperation with members from the multidisciplinary Tick-borne Diseases Turku -consortium ( ).
Who we are looking for
We are seeking a person who is not afraid to work with ticks and is aiming to complete a doctoral degree. The applicant should be motivated and interested in learning and/or deepening their expertise in RNA work and bioinformatics required for transcriptomics research. Previous experience in bioinformatics and molecular genetic laboratory work is considered an advantage, especially direct experience in gene expression or transcriptomics studies.
As a doctoral researcher,