Postdoctoral research assistant 80%: Chemical Diversity of Amazonian
Plants

A Postdoctoral position in the Cámara-Leret groupat the Department of
Systematic and Evolutionary Botany, University of Zurich, is available
from 1 June 2026. The position is for one year, with the possibility of
extension for an additional year following a positive evaluation.

Reporting to Prof Rodrigo Cámara-Leret, the postdoctoral researcher
will work within the SNSF Starting Grant project INDIGENOMICS, which
investigates the diversity and distribution of plant chemical traits
and their relationships with human use. The project aims to document
and explain patterns in the chemical diversity of plants used by people,
with a particular focus on tropical regions. By integrating metabolomics,
biodiversity data, and ethnobotanical information, the project seeks to
better understand how plant chemical diversity underpins the benefits
that biodiversity provides to societies and how these resources can be
conserved and used sustainably.

The Cámara-Leret lab offers a collaborative research environment
with high-quality supervision and a vibrant international team. The
successful candidate will actively collaborate across disciplines and
project partners, including Prof. Lauren Raz (Instituto de Ciencias
Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá), Prof. Laurent
Bigler (Department of Chemistry, UZH), and Dr. Mathieu Perret and Dr. Fred
Stauffer (Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques de Genève), among others.

Responsibilities

The post holder will conduct research and provide technical support
in metabolomics, including laboratory analyses, data processing,
interpretation, publication, and supervision of team members. Key
responsibilities include:

Performing metabolite extractions and LC-MS analyses (positive and
negative ionisation) of a large set of 3,000 botanical samples.
Managing and processing large LC-MS datasets, including feature
detection, annotation, quality control, and multivariate statistical
analyses.
Interpreting results and contributing to the scientific direction of
the project.
Contributing to manuscripts for peer-reviewed journals and to
presentations and reports.
Providing technical support to MSc and PhD students in laboratory
procedures and data processing workflows.

Essential selection criteria

Hold a PhD in chemical ecology, biology, chemistry, or a related
discipline.
Specialist knowledge in untargeted metabolomics.
Demonstrated ability to manage own academic research and associated
activities
Track record of high-quality publications in peer-reviewed journals.
Excellent communication skills, including the ability to work effectively
within international research teams.
Proficient in spoken and written English and Spanish.

About the Department of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany

Our Department of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany houses modern
molecular and ecological labs, an herbarium comprising 3,000,000 plant
specimens (United Herbaria of UZH and ETH, the 15thlargest herbarium in
the world), and a Botanical Garden with 8,000 species. The mission of
the Department is to "increase the knowledge of plant diversity, the
processes and patterns of plant evolution, the relationships between
plants and other organisms and aspects of plant conservation."Our
collaborators at the Department of Chemistry have state-of-the-art
instruments for screening plant metabolomes, computational facilities
with databases of natural products, and structure elucidation software.
The University of Zurich has a broad research coverage of organismal
and molecular biology. The city of Zurich offers excellent quality of
life and attractive surroundings for outdoor sports.

Interested applicants should send me an email
(rodrigo.camaraleret[at]uzh.ch) by April 1st2026with:

1.Motivation letter (2 pages maximum), summarising your research
  experience, interests, and plans to link chemical traits to
  ethnobotany beyond previous research (e.g., any publication at
  https://rcamaraleret.com/publications.html)

2. CV (2 pages maximum)

3. e-mail of two academic referees

Please send all documents in a single pdf file.

Dr. Rodrigo Cámara Leret

Assistant Professor in Tropical Plant Diversity and Ethnobotany
Department of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany | University of Zürich
Zollikerstrasse 107 | 8008 Zürich | Switzerland
http://rcamaraleret.com

Rodrigo Camara Leret <rodrigo.camaraleret@uzh.ch>

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