INTERNSHIP IN ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY – OMICS

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INRAE ​​presentation

The National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and the Environment (INRAE) is a public research establishment bringing together a working community of 12,000 people, with 272 units research, service and experimental, implanted In 18 centres on all France. INRAE ​​is positioned among the very first world leaders in agricultural and food sciences, in plant and animal sciences. Its research aims to build solutions for multi-efficient agriculture, quality food and sustainable management of resources and ecosystems.

Working environment, missions and activities

This internship is part of an issue of strengthening the current food chemical safety monitoring system, by developing high-throughput, sensitive and cost-controlled screening tools. In this ANR project called SENTINEL, a study model was targeted for the development of these analytical screening tools: the monitoring of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in meat. During the course, two Complementary avenues will be explored among non-targeted omics approaches: volatolomics and proteomics. The INRAE-QuaPA unit has already shown the potential of volatolomics, for example, to monitor chemical safety in the fields of food (Ratel et al., 2017, 2022), the environment (Hidalgo et al. al., 2019; Fernandes et al., 2023) and health (Deviens et al., 2017, 2018; Fournier et al., 2023). Likewise, proteomics has also been used to reveal biomarkers of certain metabolic disturbances, in saliva (Chambon et al., 2021) or muscle (Gueugneau et al., 2021) For example. The complementarity that proteomics can bring and the joint exploitation of data obtained by bioinformatics and biostatistical tools in these areas of surveillance will be very interesting and innovative to explore.

Thanks to the experimental installations of the INRAE-BOA unit (Nouzilly), different controlled situations of exposure to an industrial mixture of PCBs (Aroclor 1260) were carried out, alive (chickens exposed or not through their diet) and in vitro (poultry hepatocytes exposed or not). At the end of these experiments, samples were taken either from the poultry (experiment alive), or on hepatocyte cultures (experimentation in vitro). The trainee will be interested in one of these two types of samples collected. She/He will implement 2 omic analysis methods: (i) a volatolomic analysis carried out by solid phase microextraction coupled with gas chromatography and mass spectrometry (SPME-GC-MS), (ii) a semi-quantitative analysis without labeling (shotgun) of the proteome extracted from the samples carried out by coupling liquid chromatography then high resolution tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Once these analyzes have been carried out, the trainee will be in charge of exploiting the analytical signals in order to provide a fine and detailed composition of the volatolomes and proteomes. The trainee will participate in chemometric treatments which will firstly bring out the discriminative information contained in each data set and then establish links between the respective informative potentials of the volatolome and the proteome. The objective is to highlight biological, volatomic and proteomic signatures revealing exposure to PCBs and to discuss the metabolic origin of the compounds revealed as markers.

Training and skills sought

Specialty in analytical chemistry, separation sciences. Interest in data processing

Motivation, rigor, autonomy

Your quality of life at INRAE

By joining INRAE, you benefit (depending on the type of contract and its duration):

– up to 30 days of leave + 15 RTT per year (for full time)
– parental support: CESU childcare, leisure benefits;
– skills development mechanisms: training, career guidance advice;
– social support: advice and listening, social aid and loans;
– holiday and leisure services: holiday vouchers, accommodation at preferential rates;
– sporting and cultural activities;
– collective catering.

How to apply

I send my CV and my cover letter