Research Associate: King’s College London

We are seeking a highly motivated, scientifically curious, and creative postdoctoral research associate with a strong interest in mammalian brain development, specifically neuronal and glial subtype specification to join Setsuko Sahara in collaboration with Laura Andreae’s and Eugene Makeyev lab at King’s College London (  https://devneuro.org/cdn/group-overview.php?groupID=87). This 3-year post is funded by the BBSRC.

The Sahara lab studies the mechanisms regulating the self-renewal potential of cortical progenitors and the ability of multipotent cells to differentiate into different types of progenitors and neurons/glia (Ramos et al 2020). The successful applicant will pursue research projects to understand how a vast diversity of cortical projection neurons and glia emerge from a limited number of progenitors during development. We will address this question by interrogating the molecular mechanisms in mouse cortical development. These include in vivo manipulation of gene expression in vivo, cell and molecular biology, brain slice physiology, imaging and bioinformatics.

Applicants should have an undergraduate degree and PhD (awarded or soon to be awarded) in neuroscience. Prior experience with transcriptomics and related bioinformatics and cell sorting techniques, brain slice physiology, ES cell-based neuronal differentiation (2D or 3D), or brain clearing for 3D imaging is an advantage. Candidates from other disciplines but eager to switch the field to neuroscience will be considered if she/he demonstrates high flexibility with a good track record.

The lab is based at the Centre for Developmental Neurobiology (CDN) and the MRC Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders at King’s College London (KCL), with easy access to various areas of expertise from molecular and stem cells biology, synapse biology, in vivo imaging to behavioural studies and clinical research. This provides a stimulating environment and extensive training opportunities for the proposed project.

For more information, please contact setsuko.sahara@kcl.ac.uk, or apply directly at https://jobs.kcl.ac.uk/gb/en/job/061365/Research-Associate