Postdoctoral Research Associate - Developmental Neurobiology – Zakharenko lab

A postdoctoral position is available for highly motivated individuals with a background in Computational Neuroscience to analyze complex time-series data from ongoing 2-photon microscopy experiments and animal behavior studies.

Our laboratory conducts 2-photon laser-scanning microscopy imaging of neuronal activity in awake mice, with a focus on mouse models of genetic risks for developing schizophrenia. Preference will be given to applicants who have received their Ph.D. degrees in computational neuroscience, physics, mathematics, computer science, or related fields within the last 3 years and have experience in computational neuroscience and data mining using machine learning methods.

The successful candidate will lead an independent research project dedicated to identifying abnormal neuronal activities in circuits of murine models of 22q11.2 and 3q29 deletion syndromes, two rare conditions that confer the highest genetic risks of schizophrenia.

Qualifications:

• PhD in computational neuroscience, physics, mathematics, computer science, or related fields

• Demonstrated hands-on experience with machine learning techniques

• Strong programming skills (Python preferred)

• Experience analyzing time-series data, preferably from neuroimaging or behavioral studies

• Knowledge of signal processing and statistical analysis

• Excellent communication skills and ability to work in a collaborative environment

Preference will be given to applicants who have a strong background in leveraging cutting-edge AI and machine-learning techniques to solve complex problems in Neuroscience. The candidate also will benefit from an outstanding, highly collaborative work environment in which a diverse team of researchers is focusing efforts toward understanding the mechanisms of schizophrenia and other psychiatric disease behaviors at the levels of neural circuits and individual neurons, synapses, and molecules.

The laboratory is equipped with two dedicated 2-photon mesoscopes (Thorlabs) and Mini-2p (Thorlabs). The successful candidate will join a diverse team of researchers whose efforts are directed toward understanding behavior at the levels of neural circuits, individual neurons, synapses, and molecules. The laboratory is part of the Department of Developmental Neurobiology, which houses specialized departmental shared resources, including an integrated support structure for rodent behavior testing, 3-dimensional brain organoids, in vivo and ex vivo cellular imaging, bioinformatics, production of genetically engineered animal models, single-cell profiling, and advanced image processing and analysis. In addition, numerous institutional shared resources and core facilities support the laboratory by providing expertise and state-of-the-art technologies.

       

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital offers an excellent salary and benefits package and is an equal opportunity employer. Interested applicants should send their CVs and the names and addresses of 3 references to:

Stanislav Zakharenko, M.D., Ph.D.
Department of Developmental Neurobiology, MS 322

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
262 Danny Thomas Place
Memphis, TN 38105

stanislav.zakharenko@stjude.org

St. Jude is an Equal Opportunity Employer

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