Structural bioinformatics engineer (St Denis de la Réunion)

Position Type: Postdoc
Minimum Education Level: Bac +8 (PhD)
Contract Type: Fixed-Term Contract 
Contract Length (in months): 18 months 
Renewable: YES 
Salary: 2400

As part of the project "Optimization of Camelid Antibodies (VHH) in Reunion Island", selected under the FEDER 2023 AMI funded by the FEDER/INTERREG 2021/2027 operational program, an 18-month postdoctoral engineering position is available within the DSIMB unit of the University of Reunion Island. This position is supervised by Dr. Fabrice Gardebien, project manager, and Dr. Alexandre G. de Brevern, director of DSIMB. The position focuses on the humanization of VHHs, their dynamics, and their optimization. VHHs are the specific VH domains of camelid immunoglobulins. Small in size (120-130 residues), they are very stable and have properties distinct from conventional immunoglobulins. However, coming from camels, they cannot be injected into humans without being humanized. The recruited engineer will therefore select a non-redundant set of VHHs in complex with a protein partner from the Protein DataBank, paying attention to their qualities. Specific subsets of data on dengue, COVID-19, and the Zika virus will also be proposed. They will then humanize them using dedicated software. Finally, they will analyse the initial and humanized VHHs using molecular dynamics to understand the effects of mutations linked to humanization. The work will be extended to VHH-protein complexes. As part of your work, you will be required to participate in certain professional trips such as working meetings in metropolitan France, dedicated training courses, and national and/or international conferences. Salary is adjusted based on experience and established salary scales. It is also possible to adjust the contract start dates.

Keywords: Structural bioinformatics, antibodies, nanobodies, molecular dynamics, docking.

Employer

Team: DSIMB Réunion  UMR_S 1134 
Address: 15 Avenue René Cassin, Saint-Denis Cedex 9 97400, Réunion 
Country: France 
Postal Code: 97400 
City: Saint-Denis de la Réunion

Contacts 
1. Name: Gardebien Fabrice 
Email: fabrice.gardebien@univ-reunion.fr

2. Name: de Brevern Alexandre
Email: alexandre.debrevern@univ-paris-diderot.fr

Application Procedure: Send an email of intent to both correspondents
(fabrice.gardebien@univ-reunion.fr, alexandre.debrevern@univ-paris-diderot.fr) to initiate contact.

URL to the offer: https://www.apec.fr/candidat/recherche-emploi.html/emploi/detail-offre/176886723W

Application deadline: 05/09/2025
Offer validity date: 05/09/2025 
Start date: 01/10/2025