Postdoctoral Researcher in Neuroscience at Lund University

Lund University was founded in 1666 and is consistently ranked among the world's top universities. It has around 47,000 students and more than 8,800 employees in Lund, Helsingborg, and Malmö. We unite in our efforts to understand, explain, and improve our world and the conditions of humanity.

Lund University welcomes applicants with diverse backgrounds and experiences. Gender equality, equal opportunities, and diversity are fundamental principles for all parts of our operations.

Workplace Description

We offer a position to work on research in neuroscience.

The work in the Glia-Immune Interactions laboratory is centered around the glial-lymphatic (glymphatic) system, which is a clearance system for soluble substances and proteins in the brain, and its role in CNS diseases. Disruption of the system in disease and aging can increase the propensity for the development of neurodegenerative diseases or worsen the pathology of neurodegenerative diseases.

The goal of the work in our laboratory is to gain a deeper understanding of the glymphatic system and to enhance brain clearance through the glymphatic system to cure or prevent neurodegenerative diseases. The lab uses animal models for diseases and in vivo imaging to study the glymphatic system in health and disease. The research is highly translational and uses models relevant to human diseases.

The operation is located at the Biomedical Center in Lund. Within the research group, we value a good working environment with respect and care in our relationships with each other. We continuously strive to create conditions for job satisfaction, development, and participation for all group members. We care about both physical safety and the psychosocial work environment. The group is international and regularly hosts guest researchers and master's students.

We are looking for a postdoctoral researcher for a new project in the research group. The projects within the group are related to the glymphatic system and Alzheimer's disease.

Project Description

The postdoctoral researcher will work on a new project for a Nordic consortium, recently funded by the Lundbeck Foundation. The overall aim of the project is to test whether existing drugs can enhance brain clearance from the brain to the blood. The work on the project is conducted in collaboration with other Nordic partner laboratories in the consortium. The partners in the consortium have together developed a new strategy for a brain clearance 'real-time assay' using biotin-linked protein, where the strong and specific interaction between biotin and streptavidin can be used to achieve maximal 'signal to noise' and detection of pmol protein in the blood. The laboratory's part of the project is to test and optimize this new strategy and subsequently test various drugs with this method. The project is carried out in collaboration with partners in Nordic countries, and results are communicated with them online and during physical meetings.

Job Responsibilities and Duties

At Lund University, a postdoctoral position should provide opportunities for scientific and pedagogical merit. Primarily, space is given for merit in research, but also for some higher education pedagogical training. Teaching may also be included in the job responsibilities.

As a postdoctoral researcher, you will be responsible for testing the relevant drugs and comparing them with relevant control molecules in streptavidin-based fluorescence detection of the injected biotin. This means that the postdoctoral researcher will be responsible for working independently to develop and confirm the functionality of a specific clearance of intraparenchymal protein to the blood based on input and supervision from the group leader. The aim is to develop the use of biotin with regard to streptavidin-based detection to achieve the best possible sensitivity in the clearance assay from brain to blood.

This is a new method, developed at a theoretical level specifically for this consortium, and which our laboratory therefore has no experience with. Therefore, it is important that the postdoctoral researcher can work independently with the task and evaluation of their own work. In the role of postdoctoral researcher, you will perform fluorescence measurements in plasma samples. Additionally, you will make brain slices to ensure how much biotin-protein remains in the brain after intraparenchymal injections. You will also be responsible for statistical analysis and reporting results with representative images, as well as conducting meetings online and in Nordic countries with the consortium partners. You will report your progress to the group leader once a week.

As a postdoctoral researcher, you will receive an introduction to the lab and basic methods in the lab, and supervision and sparring with the group leader in the steps that the group has not done before. Since this is a new project, you as a postdoctoral researcher will be responsible for applying for animal ethical approval for these experiments. It is expected that you will participate in other ongoing research projects in the group as needed.

Qualifications

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The Faculty of Medicine is an area of operation within Lund University, responsible for education and research in medicine, care, and health. The education is conducted in close collaboration with healthcare and is well anchored in the faculty's strong research tradition. The faculty's research spans a wide field within experimental basic research, patient-oriented clinical research, and health science research. The Faculty of Medicine, with over 1,800 employees and 2,700 students in Lund, Malmö, and Helsingborg, is an intensive knowledge meeting place for students, teachers, and researchers from around the world.

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