The UK DRI at Cardiff is delighted to offer a funded PhD Studentship for the project titled, "A precision medicine pipeline for treating rare forms of Parkinson’s disease". Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative disorder leading to tremor, rigidity, and cognitive decline. There is currently no treatment that can delay the onset or prevent PD. Most cases of PD are idiopathic, but there is a substantial fraction that are familial and caused by either dominant or recessive mutations. For example, mutations in the PARKIN gene are recessive and lead to a very early onset disease and dragged out progression over 30 to 50 years. Here we aim to design a precision medicine approach for rare PARKIN mutations using a gene editing approach. The benefits of gene correction will be determined using functional neuronal assays, including RNA sequencing and electrophysiology. This project will be performed in a collaborative manner and co-supervised by Dr Dayne Beccano-Kelly, an expert on PD and synaptic biology, and Prof Vincent Dion, who has expertise in gene editing for neurodegenerative disorders. Application deadline: Friday 31 May 2024
Apply to centreThe Dion Lab at the UK DRI at Edinburgh is seeking a Technical Specialist to support within gene editing and expanded repeat sequencing carrying out supporting work, providing advice, guidance and support, and leading projects within this area. Some of the post holders key duties will include providing professional advice and guidance on gene editing processes in immortalised cell lines and iPSCs and procedures to internal and external customers, using judgement and creativity to suggest the most appropriate course of action where appropriate, and ensuring understanding of complex and conceptual issues. Ref: 18435BR, Closing date: Wednesday 15 May
Apply to centreThe UK DRI at UCL is looking for a highly motivated, experienced, and self-driven Postdoctoral Research Fellow to join the Krupic Lab to help investigate the role of disrupted deep brain circuitry in diminished spatial memory function in Alzheimer’s disease. The Krupic laboratory employs neural recordings using multi-tetrodes, Neuropixels, and two-photon imaging in head-fixed mice navigating in virtual enclosures as well as comprehensive monitoring of mouse behaviour in the smart-Kages (the home monitoring system that was recently developed in the lab). One of your main tasks will be to help implement the long-term neural recordings in the smart Kages. You will hold a PhD in neuroscience or a related subject and have significant experience with in vivo electrophysiological recordings and data analysis in behaving mice, and good proven programming skills with MATLAB or Python as well as good knowledge of statistics and complex neural data analysis. Excellent experience performing in vivo surgeries, such as chronic implantation of multi-tetrodes, Neuropixels, or similar, along with maintaining mice during the chronic experience, pre- and post-surgery is also essential. Ref: B02-06902, Closing date: Sunday 2 June 2024
Apply to centreThe UK DRI at UCL is looking for a highly motivated, experienced, and self-driven Postdoctoral Research Fellow to join the Krupic Lab and study how spatial memory and the ability to navigate to the goal are affected in the Tau- and amyloid-beta- Alzheimer’s disease mouse models and how these changes correlate with neural and synaptic functions of the medial entorhinal-hippocampal neurons. The lab is especially keen to develop a stronger analytical and theoretical background for understanding the changes in neural dynamics related to the progression of Tau and/or Amyloid pathology. You will hold a PhD in neuroscience or a related subject, with strong experience with complex neural and behavioural data analysis, including writing your analysis functions, and excellent programming skills in either MATLAB or Python, combined with knowledge of statistics and complex neural data analysis. Experience of working on hippocampal and/or medial entorhinal datasets and in in vivo electrophysiological recordings, two-photon imaging, and mouse behaviour is desirable. Ref: B02-06901, Closing date: Sunday 2 June 2024
Apply to centreThe Bowles Lab at the UK DRI at Edinburgh is seeking a Postdoctoral Research Fellow interested in investigating the functional and transcriptomic effects of astrocytic tau pathology in progressive supranuclear palsy, using human iPSC models and brain tissues. The postdoc will be responsible for culturing and differentiating iPSC lines, and carrying out various manipulations using molecular biology techniques and transcriptomic assessment, as well as conducting spatial transcriptomics on human brain tissues. Ref: 10031, Closing date: Thursday 9 May 2024
Apply to centreThe Opazo Lab at the UK DRI at Edinburgh is seeking a Postdoctoral Research Fellow with experience with in-vivo two-photon microscopy, optogenetics, stereotaxic surgeries and animal behaviour. The purpose of the role is to investigate the synaptic and neuronal compensatory mechanisms that preserve cognitive function in Alzheimer’s disease mouse models. The project will involve the visualization and optogenetic manipulations of synapses (e.g. dendritic spines) and neuronal ensembles using in-vivo two-photon imaging in the primary visual cortex; as well as AAV-mediated genetic manipulations and animal behaviour. The ideal candidate will have prior experience with in-vivo two-photon imaging microscopy, optogenetics, stereotaxic surgeries and animal behaviour. Some experience with transcriptomics/proteomics, in-utero electroporation, molecular biology and programming (Matlab), would be desirable. Ref: 10199, Closing date: 7 May 2024
Apply to centreThe Opazo Lab at the UK DRI at Edinburgh is seeking a Research Assistant to provide support for ongoing experiments using immunohistochemistry, confocal and two-photon microscopy, stereotaxic surgeries and AAV-mediated genetic manipulations. The primary purpose of the position is to provide research support for ongoing experiments on synaptic compensation and repair in Alzheimer’s disease models. The projects in the lab involve AAV-mediated genetic manipulations, as well as the visualization of synapses (e.g. dendritic spines) using in-vitro and in-vivo two-photon microscopy. The ideal candidate will have prior experience in stereotaxic surgeries, two-photon microscopy and management of transgenic mouse lines colonies, as well as the ability to conduct own research and associated administrative activities. Ref: 10202, Closing date: 7 May 2024
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