PhD Position in Natural Science, specializing in biology/aquaculture

The University of Gothenburg tackles society’s challenges with diverse knowledge. 53 500 students and 6 500 employees make the university a large and inspiring place to work and study. Strong research and attractive study programmes attract scientists and students from around the world. With new knowledge and new perspectives, the University contributes to a better future.

Project description
Co-culture in aquaculture - a winning concept for sustainable food production. The overall aim of the doctoral project is to create a scientific knowledge base for the development of a sustainable farming of seafood as a growing food sector for human consumption. Within the employment, you will conduct research, scientific collaboration and method development within aquaculture with a focus on circular systems and co-farming of aquaculture species from different trophic levels. Organisms within multi-species farming systems can be from different or the same trophic levels. They affect each other's growth rate and survival, not only through the exchange of nutrients, but also through chemical signaling between each other and with the microorganisms in the systems.

The aim of the project is to characterize, understand and develop co-farming of marine organisms with a main objective to optimize the health and welfare of the farmed organisms and thus also the productivity and harvest of several different valuable marine biomasses, from the same aquaculture system. The project will focus on land-based recirculating systems, RAS, and integrated multitrophic aquaculture, IMTA. You will study the health and well-being of fish, which is strongly linked to water quality as well as to other environmental factors, but also to productivity and product quality. Furthermore, you will study the equivalent for the low-trophic organisms included in the systems. The overall goal of the project is to design farming environments with optimal growth, health and welfare as well as product quality of the included species, in the system where water quality is a key factor. The factors that affect water quality and thus the optimal farming conditions in circular RAS-IMTA systems are of extreme interest to several of the industrial partners in the BLUE FOOD center. The doctoral student will collaborate with and carry out practical work at the external partner Smögenlax AB as well as together with Swedish Algae Factory AB and Nordic Seafarm AB.

Job assignments
The main task is to conduct the PhD thesis work under supervision, which includes development of the PhD student’s methodological experience, analytical skills, as well as theoretical depth and breadth. The experimental focus of the PhD project will be on fish physiology and the understanding of environmental factors affecting the fish health, welfare and growth. You will work with whole animal studies as well as tissue physiology and immunology and molecular techniques. The focus is further to study and develop systems for optimal co-farming of organisms from different trophic levels. This includes the microbiological communities in the RAS biofilters and how the organisms affect each other and the water quality in the system.
 
The studies will be conducted in the form of laboratory, small-scale, experiments at the RAS laboratory and the physiological laboratories at Medicinaregatan 18A in Gothenburg and at Tjärnö Marine Biology Laboratory. Furthermore, experiments will be scaled up and tested in the research and development facility for RAS that is under construction at Smögenlax AB. As we have national and international partners, the project will possibly also include guest visits and studies elsewhere in Sweden or abroad. Furthermore, the work will include statistical analyzes and compilation of results in scientific articles. You will also present the results at conferences, seminars and project meetings. As a doctoral student within the young researcher program of the Blue food centre, you are expected to communicate and collaborate actively with the other Blue food members.

Third cycle education
Admission to third cycle education is aiming at a PhD in Natural Science, specializing Biology. The education runs for four years of fulltime studies, containing three years of thesis work and one year of academic education (i.e. course work and literature studies). A selection of courses at the Department/Faculty is available, but national/international courses can also be selected.  Some teaching and/or course administration can be included which extends the contract time to the same extent.

For more information and how to apply
In order to apply for a position at the University of Gothenburg, you have to register an account in our online recruitment system; https://web103.reachmee.com/ext/I005/1035/main?site=7&validator=9b89bead79bb7258ad55c8d75228e5b7〈=UK&rmpage=job&rmjob=19453
It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that the application is complete in accordance with the instructions in the job advertisement, and that it is submitted before the deadline. The selection of candidates is made on the basis of the qualifications registered in the application.

 

 

 


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