Postdoctoral Fellow - Ultanir Lab

Postdoctoral Fellow - Ultanir Lab

Reporting to: Sila Ultanir, Group Leader

Contact term: This is a full-time, fixed term (4-year) position on Crick terms and conditions of employment.  

The Research Group

An exciting opportunity for a motivated postdoctoral scientist to join Kinases and Brain Development laboratory https://www.crick.ac.uk/research/labs/sila-ultanir at the Francis Crick Institute, London, UK. The postdoctoral position will be in collaboration with Dr Florencia Iacaruso laboratory https://www.crick.ac.uk/research/labs/flor-iacaruso,  who uses state-of-the-art in vivo brain recordings and optogenetics methods in awake-behaving mice to analyse visual function.  

Dr Ultanir’s laboratory focuses on the role of protein kinases in neuronal development and function. Kinases regulate numerous cellular processes by phosphorylating their substrates and altering their function. CDKL5 is a brain enriched serine/threonine kinase. Loss of function mutations of CDKL5 cause a severe neurodevelopmental disorder with early-onset seizures, termed CDKL5 deficiency disorder (CDD). Our lab’s aim is to understand the roles of CDKL5 in the brain and to reveal how loss of CDKL5 leads to neuronal pathology.

Ultanir lab uses chemical genetics and mass spectrometry methods to determine the substrates and signaling pathways regulated by kinases in mouse models and human iPSCs. Other methods used in the lab include kinase biochemistry, transcriptomics, proteomics, slice electrophysiology, cellular live imaging assays and mouse behaviour. Our lab revealed CDKL5’s downstream effectors of microtubule binding proteins (Baltussen et al, 2018) and voltage-gated calcium channel Cav2.3 (Sampedro-Castaneda et al, 2023). Our discoveries led to a better understanding of CDKL5 function and pathology earning our lab a Lab of the Year award from Loulou foundation of CDKL5 research.

Cerebral visual impairment is considered to be a major feature of CDD. CDD mouse models exhibit profound reductions in cortical visual evoked responses, visual acuity and contrast sensitivity. It is unknown how CDKL5 regulates the development of the visual circuitry in mice. The project aims to reveal cellular and circuitry level functions of CDKL5 in visual development. In this collaborative project, the postdoctoral fellow will use CDKL5 knockout mice, phosphomutant mouse models of CDKL5 substrates and other genetic interventions to determine critical signalling pathways for visual cortex development.

Postdoctoral Fellow will lead their own projects, are expected to contribute to other projects on a collaborative basis (both in the lab and with external collaborators) and help train PhD students.

Key experience and competencies

The post holder should embody and demonstrate our core Crick values:

Bold; Open; Collegial

Essential

• PhD in neuroscience, biology or a related discipline or in the final stages of PhD submission
• Good knowledge and experience in craniotomy, in vivo mouse brain recordings
• Track record of writing papers as evidenced by publications or submitted manuscripts in referred journals
• Evidence of data presentation at scientific meetings

Desirable

• Experience in data analysis using, MATLAB, R or Python
• In vivo electrophysiology or imaging techniques in rodents

About Us

At the Crick, we conduct research at the forefront of biomedical research. We combine rigour with an open and collaborative culture, and are outward-looking, reflecting our status as a partnership of six organisations aiming to pool knowledge, ideas and resources.

We have a wide research portfolio with no divisions or departments, bringing biomedical researchers together with clinicians, physical scientists and applied scientists from our pharmaceutical partners.

We aim to attract the most talented researchers and support them to tackle innovative research questions. Our science technology platforms provide our researchers with access to state-of-the-art technology and expertise.

We provide an excellent learning environment with dedicated education programmes in public engagement with science, education and personal development, and a postdoc training programme that prepares scientists for leadership roles in science.

• If you are interested in applying for this role, please apply via Workday.
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• If you require a visa to work in the UK we will help support your application should you be successful

Find out what benefits the Crick has to offer:

For more information on our great pay and benefits package please click here: https://www.crick.ac.uk/careers-and-study/life-at-the-crick/pay-and-benefits

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion:

We welcome applications from all backgrounds. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities, regardless of ethnicity, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, pregnancy, age, disability, or civil partnership, marital or family status. We particularly welcome applications from people who are Minority Ethnic as they are currently underrepresented in the Crick at this level.

Diversity is essential to excellence in scientific endeavour. It increases breadth and perspective, leading to more innovation and creativity. We want the Crick to be a place where everyone feels valued and where diversity is celebrated and seen as part of the foundation for our Institute’s success.

The Crick is committed to creating equality of opportunity and promoting diversity and inclusivity. We all share in the responsibility to actively promote dignity, respect, inclusivity and equal treatment and it is our aim to ensure that these principles are reflected and implemented in all strategies, policies and practices.

Read more on our website: https://www.crick.ac.uk/careers-and-study/life-at-the-crick/equality-diversity-and-inclusion