A two year postdoctoral position is available immediately at the Institut de Génomique Fonctionnelle (IGF, Montpellier)
Principal investigator Etienne Audinat
Microglia in the wiring of Inhibitory circuits during sensory cortex critical periods (ANR MicroSenso)
Microglial cells, the resident macrophages of the central nervous system (CNS), have gained increasingly more attention over the last decade for their contributions to neural circuit development and function. The etiology of several neuropsychiatric disorders has been associated with dysfunction of microglia, perinatal inflammation and defects in cortical inhibition. In this context, the MicroSenso project aims at studying the mechanisms by which microglial cells influence the wiring of inhibitory circuits during developmental critical periods of sensory cortices. The project will combine different functional approaches (ex vivo slice and in vivo electrophysiology, calcium imaging and optogenetics) to analyze different mouse models (microglia depletion, maternal immune activation, microglia and interneurons conditional KI and KO mice). The project funded by ANR will be performed in the team “Cerebrovascular and Glia Research” (Co-PIs E Audinat & N Marchi) of the IGF in Montpellier and in collaboration with the teams of S Garel (ENS, Paris) and N Rouach (Collège de France, Paris).
Candidates should hold a PhD in Neuroscience. Experience in cellular electrophysiology is mandatory and some background in cell imaging, in vivo electrophysiology or optogenetics would be a plus. The candidate should be highly motivated and organized, have good communication skills and should speak and write English fluently.
Send your CV and a motivation letter mentioning two references to etienne.audinat@igf.cnrs.fr.