This project  is part of a grant from Alzheimer Nederland 'Amyloid β-induced pathology of inhibitory synapses'. One of earliest events in Alzheimer’s disease (AD), before clinical symptoms occur, is extensive synaptic loss and dysfunction within brain networks. While previous studies have focused on Aβ-induced changes in glutamatergic and cholinergic synapses, in this project we will study how Aβ oligomers affect synaptic transmission at inhibitory synapses. We will characterize Aβ-induced pathology of inhibitory synapses using a combination of electrophysiology and two-photon microscopy and compare our findings with inhibitory synaptic changes that occur in a mouse model for amyloidosis at the early stage of the disease.

You are a motivated postdoctoral fellow with strong analytical skills and a broad interest in neuroscience. You should be an experienced electrophysiologist (patch clamp technique) with a solid background in synaptic physiology. Ideally, you would also have experience in imaging, but this is not required.

You are offered a full-time position for one year. The gross salary is in the range between € 2,588 and maximum € 4,084 per month (according to the Collective Labour Agreement Dutch Universities). The salary is supplemented with a holiday bonus of 8% and an end-of-year bonus of 8.3% per year. We offer a pension scheme, collective insurance schemes and  flexible employment conditions. Conditions are based on the Collective Labour Agreement Dutch Universities. The research group will provide the candidate with necessary support on all aspects of the project. You’ll find more information about working at Utrecht University here.

Utrecht University has great ambitions for its teaching quality and study success rates. This also applies to its clear research profiles which are centred around four themes: Sustainability, Life Sciences, Youth & Identity, and Institutions. Utrecht University plays a prominent role in our society and contributes to finding the answers to topical and future societal issues.

 

The Faculty of Science consists of six departments: Biology, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Information and Computing Sciences, Physics and Astronomy, Chemistry and Mathematics. The Faculty is home to 3500 students and nearly 2000 staff and is internationally renowned for the quality of its research. The Faculty's academic programmes reflect developments in today's society.

The Synaptic Physiology lab, led by Dr Corette Wierenga, is embedded within the division of Cell Biology of the Biology Department of Utrecht University, which includes several research groups and is headed by Prof Casper Hoogenraad and Prof Anna Akhmanova. The common goal is to gain insight into basic cellular processes and in this way to provide mechanistic basis for devising therapies for cancer, metabolic and neurological diseases. Research topics within the division include: mechanisms underlying cytoskeletal dynamics, membrane transport and signalling pathways that underlie cell proliferation and differentiation, neuronal development and synaptic plasticity. We investigate cellular processes at a broad range of levels, from single molecules and protein networks to cells, tissues, and whole organisms.