*Applications are reviewed on a rolling-basis.

ARS Office/Lab and Location: A research opportunity is currently available with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), located in Poplarville, Mississippi.

The Agricultural Research Service (ARS) is the U.S. Department of Agriculture's chief scientific in-house research agency with a mission to find solutions to agricultural problems that affect Americans every day from field to table. ARS will deliver cutting-edge, scientific tools and innovative solutions for American farmers, producers, industry, and communities to support the nourishment and well-being of all people; sustain our nation’s agroecosystems and natural resources; and ensure the economic competitiveness and excellence of our agriculture. The vision of the agency is to provide global leadership in agricultural discoveries through scientific excellence.

Research Project: Stressors that negatively affect honey bee health (e.g., agrichemicals, intracellular pathogens) are common in the beekeeping industry. These stressors act on cellular and molecular processes, but unlike in human and veterinary medicine, cell culture systems are largely underutilized in honey bee and other bee research to study the effects of stressors at a high level of resolution under controlled conditions. Although a continuous honey bee cell line exists, it is persistently infected with a honey bee virus. As an ORISE Postdoctoral Research Fellow, you will collaborate with a team of colleagues led by your mentor to establish virus-free primary cultures using tissues from bee pollinators of commercial importance, as well as from the mite, Varroa destructor, a widespread, often abundant parasite known to transmit honey bee viruses. Reproducible establishment of primary bee and mite parasite cultures will provide a powerful platform for cell-based studies examining host-pathogen and bee-agrichemical interactions and promote creation of innovations that mitigate negative outcomes from these relationships.

Learning Objectives: You will learn and apply skills in microbiology, virology, insect biology and beekeeping to explore host-virus interactions at the molecular, cellular, and organismal levels and transfer this knowledge to impact the beekeeping industry.

Mentor(s): The mentor for this opportunity is Michael Goblirsch (Michael.Goblirsch@usda.gov). If you have questions about the nature of the research, please contact the mentor(s).

Anticipated Appointment Start Date: March 1, 2026. Start date is flexible and will depend on a variety of factors.

Appointment Length: The appointment will initially be for one year, but may be renewed upon recommendation of ARS and is contingent on the availability of funds.

Level of Participation: The appointment is full time.

Participant Stipend: The participant will receive a monthly stipend commensurate with educational level and experience. The anticipated stipend range is $75,000 - $90,000 annually.

Citizenship Requirements: This opportunity is available to U.S. citizens only.

ORISE Information: This program, administered by ORAU through its contract with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to manage the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE), was established through an interagency agreement between DOE and ARS. Participants do not become employees of USDA, ARS, DOE or the program administrator, and there are no employment-related benefits. Proof of health insurance is required for participation in this program. Health insurance can be obtained through ORISE.

Questions: Please visit our Program Website. After reading, if you have additional questions about the application process, please email ORISE.ARS.Southeast@orau.org and include the reference code for this opportunity.

Qualifications

The qualified candidate should have received a doctoral degree in the one of the relevant fields (e.g. biology, invertebrate zoology, or related that included coursework in areas such as cell biology, biochemistry, molecular biology, immunology, virology, microbiology, invertebrate zoology, and entomology). Degree must have been earned within the past five years.

Preferred skills:

• Knowledge of honey bee or pollinator biology and ecology and their application to apiculture and the beekeeping industry. 
• Experience performing independently or as a part of a team in designing, conducting, and analyzing data on experiments or research projects related to the biology and disease of honey bees or other bee pollinators.
• Experience collecting, preparing, and culturing insect tissues and cells.
• Demonstration of strong communication skills, such as summarizing research results and presenting findings at stakeholder meeting or scientific conferences.
• Experience writing scientific reports and manuscripts for publication in peer-reviewed journals.