Laboratory

RIKEN-Cambridge Joint Crop Symbiosis Research Team,
RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science
(Laboratory head: Uta Paszkowski)

Research Field

Symbioses are fundamental to life on Earth. The most ancestral association between plants and fungi emerged around 450 mya and is now so widespread among terrestrial plant species that it fundamentally supports global ecosystems, as well as crop productivity and sustainability. Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi belong to the Glomeromycotina subphylum, and facilitate plant mineral uptake from the soil in exchange for plant-derived organic carbon. The establishment of functional symbioses relies on the fine-tuned orchestration of signals to achieve coordination of the two interacting organisms. While considerable understanding of plant signalling mechanisms have been gained in recent years, we know near to nothing about fungal signalling components. To close this gap in knowledge, we wish to reciprocally elucidate how the fungus undergoes reprogramming to engage with its host rice.
We will use ‘omics’ approaches to comprehensively characterise transcriptional and translational activities of different functional units of the fungal mycelium in asymbiosis and symbiosis; we also aim to establish a stable transformation protocols to enable functional studies of gene leads. The rice blast fungus Magnaorpthe oryzae will be used as a genetically tractable, comparative root-fungal system.

Job title and Job description

Job title, available positions

Technical Staff I 1 position

Job description

Technical Staff I:

The successful candidate will have two tasks, (1) assist the Team Leader and Deputy Team Leader in organizing the smooth functioning of the lab, (2) drive an own research programme.

• (1)The successful candidate is required to have sufficient experience in lab management, including the organization of lab space, ordering of consumables and monitoring stocks, maintenance and service of instruments, executing health and safety measures, inducting new lab arrivals, and also assisting with cultivation of plant and fungal stocks.
• (2)The successful candidate is required to have sufficient experience in research to take be charged with the establishment of a transformation protocol for R. irregularis under the daily supervision of the Deputy Team Leader.

The job description may be changed during the contract period or upon contract renewal to the extent described above.

Technical Staff I:

Provides technical support to the laboratory at their own discretion.

Qualification

Technical Staff I

A university graduate or higher, or, a person who posses equivalent ability.

Work location

RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science
(Yokohama Campus)
1-7-22 Suehiro-cho, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama City, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan

RIKEN has implemented a work-from-home system. Employees can work from home in accordance with the prescribed procedures.
RIKEN may order the employee to change work locations, if necessary.

Salary and benefits

Those who will be re-contracted from the next fiscal year

• 1.A one-year fixed-term employment contract, renewable based on evaluation, to a maximum of the end of the fiscal year (March 31) in which the employee completes 7 years of employment.
• 2.RIKEN may adjust the above maximum period of renewability based on a) the employee’s abilities, workload at the time of contract completion, performance and work attitude and b) the continuation of the employee’s center, laboratory or project and RIKEN’s management situation and budget at the time. In principle, employment contracts will not be renewed for individuals older than 70 years.
• 3.In principle, the center is set to continue its research to the end of the Mid- to Long-term Plan (7 years from April 1, 2018 to March 31, 2025).
  However, if it is decided that the research project with which the Employee is involved will not be continued, the above provision on continuation of the “research center, laboratory or project” applies and there will be no re-employment for FY 2025 (from April 1, 2025)

In principle, the first two months of employment is considered a trial period.
Salary will be an annual salary based on experience, ability, and performance, and will consist of a base salary and a variable salary. The variable salary will be determined each fiscal year based on experience, ability, and performance. The monthly base salary is 244,500 JPY as of April 1, 2024. The monthly base salary and variable salary are subject to change due to amendments to RIKEN regulations.

Discretionary work, commuting and housing allowances will be provided. Social insurance will be applied.

The approximate amount of annual salary at the time of employment:

Technical Staff I

The monthly salary including discretionary work allowance at the time of employment will be 300,000 JPY or more.

Mandatory membership in the RIKEN Mutual Benefit Society (RIKEN Kyosaikai).

This position falls under the specialized duties discretionary work system; one working day will be calculated as 7 hours and 30 minutes.

Days off include public holidays, New Year's holidays (Dec. 29 - Jan 3), and RIKEN Foundation Day.
Paid leave includes annual paid leave (up to 20 days depending on the month of employment), special paid leave (childcare, family nursing care, etc.), and work life balance holidays (up to 7 days depending on the month of employment).
There are also additional leave systems such as maternity leave, childcare leave, and family nursing care leave.
Smoking will be entirely prohibited on site from April 2024.
These and other provisions are in accordance with RIKEN regulations.

RIKEN is actively undertaking initiatives to promote gender equality and diversity, and moving forward with the establishment of a diverse and vibrant research environment. If multiple candidates are found to have the same aptitude following a fair assessment, active efforts will be made to recruit female candidates.

The childcare facility, RIKEN Kids Yokohama, is on the Yokohama Campus.
For details, please contact the Welfare Group in the Human Resources Section, Administrative Division, Yokohama Campus at: kids-yk-hr [at] ml.riken.jp.

*RIKEN has a work-from-home system, but this position requires attendance at the work location. Therefore, the work-from-home system is not available for this position. For more information, please get in touch with the hiring staff at csrs-hr [at] riken.jp.

Application and required documents

Required documents

[Technical Staff I]

• 1.Complete CV or CV
  • *Please write Open-call ID [CSRS-2403] and the position you are applying for.
  • *Using the RIKEN format above is appreciated.
• 2.List of acquired skills
• 3.Reason for application and future plan
• 4.A letter of recommendation from the PI of current laboratory
  • *The letter should be addressed to the Center for Sustainable Resource Science, Director.
  • *A recommendation from a third party is allowed when it is difficult for the candidate to obtain a recommendation from the PI of current laboratory.
  • *For Technical Staff I and II, at the discretion of the PI, the submission of a letter of recommendation may be omitted when submitting the application documents, and only applicants who have passed the document screening may submit a letter of recommendation.
• 5.Certificate of graduation of the most recent education, or a copy of Diploma
• 6.Consent form for handling personal information based on GDPR
  • *If you are a resident of the European Economic Area (EEA)or UK, you are required to submit the document, "Consent form for handling personal information based on GDPR and Regulation of the European Parliament and of the council of on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data (UK General Data Protection Regulation)" with your signature.
    • You will find detailed information about General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) on the following website:
      Data protection | European Commission
    • You will find detailed information about Regulation of the European Parliament and of the council of on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data (UK GDPR) on the following website:
      Data Protection and the EU | Information Commissioner’s Office

How to apply

The above documents except the recommendation letters combined into a single ZIP file should be uploaded to the following website:

For Technical Staff I position, RIKEN-Cambridge Joint Crop Symbiosis Research Team, RIKEN CSRS

The file name of the ZIP should contain your contact email address.
After you uploaded the ZIP file, please let us (csrs-hr [at] riken.jp) know the file name of the uploaded file.

Recommendation letters must be directly submitted from the referees to the following website with the file name " RIKEN-Cambridge Joint Crop Symbiosis Research Team, Technical Staff I [applicant’s name] (Recommendation letter)". Please specify the applicant's name, referee's name and contact information in the recommendation letter.

For Technical Staff I position, RIKEN-Cambridge Joint Crop Symbiosis Research Team, RIKEN CSRS

After the referees uploaded the recommendation letter, please let us (csrs-hr [at] riken.jp) know the file name of the uploaded file.
If a confirmation email is not received within 7 days after submission, please contact: csrs-hr [at] riken.jp.

If the submission requirements are not met, your application will not be received.

Deadline

Open until the position is filled

• *Application documents will not be returned.
• *Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted via email after document screening.

Handling Personal Data

Submitted documents are strictly protected under the RIKEN Privacy Policy and will be used only for the purpose of applicant screening at RIKEN. Personal information will not be disclosed, transferred or loaned to a third party under any circumstances without just cause.

Selection process

Application screening and interview for selected applicants (face-to-face or remote).

Start of Employment

June 1, 2024 (Negotiable)

Contact Information

RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science
RIKEN-Cambridge Joint Crop Symbiosis Research Team
Email: csrs-hr [at] riken.jp
For inquiries, please send an email.