Adaptive mechanisms and evolutionary innovations in photosynthetic organisms in response to environmental diversity M/F

Organisation/Company CNRS Department Direction des ressources humaines Research Field Biological sciences Technology » Biotechnology Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Application Deadline 2 Sep 2026 - 17:00 (UTC) Country France Type of Contract Other Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 35 Offer Starting Date 4 Aug 2026 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

The Junior Professorship Chair (CPJ) project is part of the CNRS Biology national strategy, which aims to better understand the mechanisms that enable adaptation and/or response to environmental pressures, whether abiotic or biotic. Photosynthetic organisms play a central role in the biosphere, accounting for most of the carbon fixation and primary production in the biosphere, structuring biogeochemical cycles and occupying an extremely wide range of ecological niches. Their ability to adapt, particularly in the face of rapid changes in environmental parameters, is a major scientific challenge. The proposed CPJ fully meets the CNRS's objective of supporting the emergence of innovative and interdisciplinary themes. It is part of the priorities for 2023–2027: the development of new biological models, the study of the mechanisms of adaptation in living organisms, integrative biology and understanding life in extreme or transitional environments. Current knowledge is based on model organisms or cultivated organisms, which do not cover the entire tree of life and have limitations in terms of both biodiversity and the environmental conditions studied. By enabling the recruitment of a young scientist to study the adaptation of photosynthetic organisms to little-explored environmental conditions, the CPJ will strengthen the CNRS's capacity to address key issues for understanding biodiversity and its evolution. It will contribute to the renewal of research themes, the international attractiveness of the Grenoble site, and the structuring of national and European collaborations around environmental physiology and emerging models.

The LPCV leads an integrated research program aimed at understanding the functional organization, evolution, and adaptation of photosynthetic eukaryotes, spanning molecular and cellular scales to the level of the environment. The laboratory has recognized expertise in the study of emerging model systems, revealing adaptive mechanisms that remain inaccessible through conventional models.The CPJ will focus on elucidating still poorly understood adaptive mechanisms, relying on one or several emerging model organisms. This initiative aligns with the LPCV strategy, which emphasizes the exploration of functional biodiversity, the development of new model systems, multi-scale approaches, and the articulation between fundamental research and environmental challenges.It will benefit from an exceptional research environment, built on the collective expertise of the laboratory, access to technical facilities for biological engineering and culture of microalgae and plants enabling precise control of environmental conditions, as well as access to the LIPANG, µLife, and FIB-SEM platforms, in addition to major research infrastructures available in Grenoble.

The project will aim to uncover novel mechanisms enabling photosynthetic organisms to adapt to the dynamic diversity of environments and to understand their molecular and cellular determinants. The mechanisms investigated may include adaptation to extreme conditions or biological innovations, such as previously uncharacterized cellular architectures, developmental patterns, or interspecific associations such as photosymbioses.By leveraging emerging model organisms originating from poorly studied branches of the tree of life, or from extreme or atypical environments, the successful candidate will explore mechanisms that remain inaccessible in classical model systems. The approach will integrate a broad range of tools to link processes from the molecular scale to the environmental scale. Particular attention will be given to the evolutionary signatures of the identified innovations, in order to determine how environmental conditions have shaped molecular processes across different clades.

The successful candidate will join the biology programmes at the University of Grenoble Alpes, in particular the L3 Life Sciences bachelor's degree and the PLANT-Int master's degree. There, he or she will develop courses in cell biology, plant physiology, ecophysiology, biodiversity and functional genomics, based on a search-driven approach and using modern tools (image analysis, omics, exploitation of emerging models). Innovative modules based on experimental approaches, the quantification of biological variability, and the comparative analysis of conventional and emerging models may be offered. The successful candidate will thus contribute to the international and interdisciplinary outreach of Grenoble's programmes.

The CNRS is developing a strong policy in favor of open science. Open science consists of making research results "as accessible as possible and closed as necessary". As such, the CNRS aims to make 100% of the texts of publications resulting from the work of its laboratories accessible , in particular through deposit in HAL. The data produced must also be made available and reusable, except for specific restrictions. In addition, the guiding principles of individual evaluation have been revised in accordance with the DORA declaration, to be more qualitative and to take into account all facets of the researcher's profession.

The dissemination of the results will be done through world-class scientific productions: publications, patents, software... In addition, the results will be communicated to various targets such as scientific communities, media, decision makers, general public, schools, etc., with an adapted calendar. Specific tools may be developed such as websites, newsletters, meetings, international symposia, summer schools and conferences.

The relationship between science and society is now recognized as a full dimension of scientific activity. The project will develop this dimension in synergy with all the partners. The resulting research work will contribute to informing public decision-making. Participatory science initiatives may be initiated with actors from the project's socio-economic and cultural eco-system.

holders of a doctorate or a PhD or equivalent degree or applicants who have gained scientific. There is no restriction on the age or nationality of applicants. All CNRS positions are accessible to people with disabilities, with special arrangements for tests made necessary by the nature of the disability.