USDA-ARS Postdoctoral Fellowship in Secondary Metabolites and Livestock

How To Apply

To submit your application, scroll to the bottom of this opportunity and click APPLY.

• An application
• Transcript(s) – For this opportunity, an unofficial transcript or copy of the student academic records printed by the applicant or by academic advisors from internal institution systems may be submitted.  for detailed information about acceptable transcripts.
• A current resume/CV, including academic history, employment history, relevant experiences, and publication list
• Two educational or professional recommendations

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)

USDA-ARS-MWA-

To submit your application, scroll to the bottom of this opportunity and click APPLY.

• An application
• Transcript(s) – For this opportunity, an unofficial transcript or copy of the student academic records printed by the applicant or by academic advisors from internal institution systems may be submitted.  for detailed information about acceptable transcripts.
• A current resume/CV, including academic history, employment history, relevant experiences, and publication list
• Two educational or professional recommendations

All documents must be in English or include an official English translation.

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4/10/2026 3:00:00 PM Eastern Time Zone

• Applications are reviewed on a rolling-basis.

A research opportunity is currently available with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), located in Lexington, Kentucky.

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 agro‑ecosystems 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.

The broad research goals of this opportunity involve understanding the impact that plant and fungal secondary metabolites have on grazing livestock physiology and productivity. This will involve the study of forage grasses, legumes, and hemp secondary metabolites and mycotoxins associated with these plants using in vitro and in vivo animal models. Animal tissue and cell culture models will be used to study the ability of compounds of interest to cross absorptive barriers as well as evaluate the biological activity of these compounds.

The participant will have the opportunity to learn and use basic aseptic techniques needed for surgical procedures and long‑term cell culture vascular isolation and preparations necessary for smooth muscle myography preparation of ruminal and intestinal epithelial and smooth muscle tissues for absorption and contractility studies. The participant will have the opportunity to collaborate with a multidisciplinary team that is focused on identifying evaluating and manipulating the genetic, metabolic, and physiologic factors associated with grazing livestock health and productivity.

This research unit is co‑located on the campus of the University of Kentucky and the participant will have the opportunity to interact and learn from university collaborators as well as USDA‑ARS scientists. The participant will have the opportunity to expand knowledge and expertise in experimental design in vitro and in vivo research data analysis data interpretation presenting research results and preparing manuscripts for publication in peer‑reviewed journals.

The mentor for this opportunity is James Klotz (james.klotz). If you have questions about the…