Postdoctoral Research Fellow

This new full time post is available from 2 September 2024 on a fixed term basis until 1 September 2027.

The post
Dr Kyle Wedgwood is seeking to recruit a Postdoctoral Research Fellow (PDRF) for a duration of 3 years starting 2 September 2024 as part of the UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship: “Using Mathematics to Disentangle the Role of Synaptic Communication.” This interdisciplinary fellowship aims to develop new technology and algorithms to modulate synaptic interactions in neuronal network cultures. These tools will be used to shed new light on how electrical rhythms are generated in neuronal networks. These rhythms are fundamental to neurocomputational processes such as working memory, in which information is stored as a temporally ordered sequence of electrical activity.

The primary role of the post-holder will be to develop and analyse mathematical models of synaptic communication in cultured neuronal networks. These models will provide a mechanistic framework for understanding how synaptic properties, such as axonal propagation delays and connectivity maps between neurons, shape electrical rhythms will thus provide insights into fundamental neuronal computations. The models will be parametrised using data collected by other team members and will be analysed using numerical simulation and bifurcation analysis to predict the impact of synaptic parameter variation on electrical rhythms across the network. Predictions from the model will be validated in closed loop electrophysiology experiments in which the models are embedded within the data collection process and are used to perturb synaptic parameters in the biological neurons.

The successful applicant will work in an interdisciplinary team comprising: Dr Wedgwood; a PDRF who will design and conduct electrophysiology experiments; Research Software Engineers developing algorithms for innovative experiments linking the mathematical models to the biological neurons; a research technician who will support neuronal culture; and the applicant themselves. The successful applicant will join a vibrant research community within the university’s flagship research centre: The Living Systems Institute, which is home to 26 research groups applying a range of interdisciplinary techniques from mathematics, physics, and engineering to address fundamental questions across the biosciences.

About you
Applicants will possess a relevant PhD or equivalent qualification/experience in a related field of study. The successful applicant will develop, simulate, and analyse mathematical models, as well as give presentations at conferences and other events. They will have expertise in model parametrisation, numerical simulation, bifurcation analysis, and programming (with no specific restrictions on programming language). The successful applicant will be able to use mathematical models to suggest experimental protocols to validate and test model hypotheses.

Applicants will be able to work effectively in an interdisciplinary team comprising electrophysiologists, software engineers, and research technicians. As such, the successful applicant will have excellent verbal and written communication skills and should be comfortable working in environments with people from different backgrounds. In particular, the successful applicant will need to present information on research progress and outcomes, as well as having the ability to communicate both verbally and in writing complex information, to a range of stakeholders. Additionally, the successful candidate will have a demonstrable ability to write up scientific findings in a timely and succinct way for publication. 

Please ensure you read the Job Description and Person Specification for full details of this role.

Further information
For further information please contact Dr Kyle Wedgwood, k.c.a.wedgwood@exeter.ac.uk.

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