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PhD Position for a nicer smile Glycoprofiling
of the oral pathogenTannerella forsythia for
identifying novel strategies in pathogenicity
Dep. of NanoBiotechnology NanoGlycobiology Group
Time schedule Start March-May 2012 Duration
3 years
Short summary of project The Gram-negative oral
anaerobe T. forsythia is crucially involved in
the onset of periodontitis, a multifactorial
destructive gum disease that is the major cause
of tooth loss. Consequently, there is a great
biomedical interest in understanding the
bacterium-host cross-talk, for which especially
the bacterial cell surface is of high relevance.
Based on the recent identification of a general
protein O-glycosylation system in T. forsythia
that contributes to the formation of a unique
sweet cell envelope of the bacterium, this
projects aims at characterizing the virulence
potential of selected glycoproteins from the
T. forsythia cell envelope. By understanding the
molecular and cellular basis of the processes
governing pathogenicity, it shall be possible to
design rational approaches for controlling or
even preventing periodontitis.
T. forsythia glycan

• Research goals
• Expression and purification of the selected
  fucosyl-proteins from T. forsythia
• Immunology studies with selected
  fucosyl-proteins(cooperation with the Department
  of Periodontology, General Hospital, Vienna)
• Determination of the roles of selected
  fucosyl-proteins in biofilm formation

T. forsythia
Requirements The candidate must hold a MSc
degree and should have a sound background in
molecular biology, micro-biology, biochemistry.
Practical experience in the fields of immunology
and glycobiology is of advantage but not
mandatory. The highly motivated candidate should
be an excellent team player with the ability to
work independently in an interdisciplinary
environment.
We offer Motivating scientific environment at
the Vienna Institute of Biotechnology, cutting
edge research in nanoglycobiology with a link to
biomedical relevance, weekly seminars,
participation in workshops andinternational
conferences. Stays in partner laboratories abroad
are possible. Funding opportunity according to
the guidelines of FWF (http//www.fwf.ac.at/de/pro
jects/einzelprojekte.html). Possibility of
embedding the PhD thesis into the International
PhD Programme BioToP (http//biotop.boku.ac.at/).
Applicants Please e-mail your application with
motivation, full CV and references along with
contact addresses to Ao.Univ.Prof. Dr. Christina
Schäffer Dep. für NanoBiotechnologie, Universität
für Bodenkultur Wien, Muthgasse 11, 1190
Wien e-mail christina.schaeffer_at_boku.ac.at
Phone [phone]