Apologies for multiple postings.
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1-2 Postdoctoral positions
funded by the ERC Starting Grant dEMORY will
be available as of October 1st
2015 (the start date is flexible) at IMBB-FORTH in Crete, in the lab of Dr. Panayiota Poirazi.
Indicative application deadline: September 25th, 2015 (applications
will be continuously screened until the positions are filled).
· Available for 2 years, with a yearly
salary of 30,000-36,000 € (with benefits), depending
on experience and career stage.
· Requirements: Expertise in computational
neuroscience, preferably in compartmental modeling and neural/dendritic
computations.
THE PROJECT: Dissecting the Role of Dendrites in
Memory
While memory is a function that has attracted the
interest of the scientific community for several years, little is known about
the rules underlying memory formation in the brain. Until recently, the single
neuron was considered the main processing unit of the brain and memories were
believed to be stored exclusively through plasticity modifications that take
place in the synapses, the connecting sites between neurons. Over the last
decade however, emerging evidence suggests that the neuron is no longer the key
processing unit of the brain. The dendrites of individual neurons, which were
thought as merely passive devices that allow neuronal communication, are
currently the no 1 candidate for this role. The goal of this work is to
characterize the role of dendrites in learning and memory processes so as to
formulate a unifying theory regarding their contribution in memory formation
across brain regions and abstraction levels.
This will be achieved
via the development of computational models that start at the single cell level
and expand to the microcircuit and the network level, while varying in their
degree of biophysical detail. Models will express a distinct memory function,
specific to the region they belong to: the hippocampus the prefrontal cortex or
the amygdala. By manipulating the biophysical, anatomical and plasticity
properties of dendrites and tracking the effect on memory, the project aims to
infer the key rules by which these thin structures shape mnemonic processes.
These rules will then form the basis for deducing theoretical abstractions of
trainable neurons with dendrites.
The project has been
running since 2012 and has already produced a number of outcomes which can be
found at the following web sites:
www.demory.gr,
www.dendrites.gr
IMBB-FORTH
The Foundation for Research and
Technology-Hellas (FORTH) is
one of the top European Research Centers. It has ranked 1st in terms
of high impact publications in Greece and 12th in the number of FP7
grants in Europe. It should be noted that since the
establishment of the ERC grant scheme in 2007, a total of 39 awards have been
made to scientists working in Greek Institutions and 11 of them are located in
Institutes of FORTH.
The Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology (IMBB) at FORTH is the top Biological
Institute in Greece, in terms of high quality personnel, publications,
infrastructure and competitive grants. IMBB-FORTH is located in Heraklion, one
of the most ancient and historical Greek cities, on the picturesque island of
Crete. Crete, the homeland of major artists, such as El Greco and Nikos
Kazantzakis, impressively combines the outstanding geophysical variety
(forests, mountains, gorges, and beaches) with its rich history of thousands of
years, resulting in the well-known Cretan culture and cuisine.
THE POIRAZI
LAB
The Computational Biology Laboratory at IMBB-FORTH performs research that is at the
forefront of Computational Neuroscience. The work of Dr. Poirazi led to several
high impact publications, some of which have shaped the field of dendritic
computations. Her work received prestigious awards, including the EMBO Young
Investigator Award in 2005, 2 Marie Curie Fellowships, a scientist-of-the year
award in Greece in 2012, a European Research Council (ERC) starting grant in
2012, a nomination by EMBO to AcademiaNet—portal for outstanding female scientists
in Europe (2013), and the "Manolis
Christofides" Young Cypriot Investigator award in 2014. She is named Young
Scientist of the World Economic Forum for its Annual Meeting of the New
Champions in 2014 and 2015. She is a member of the Young Academy of Europe
since 2015 and currently the Chair of the FENS-KAVLI Network of Excellence whose aim is to promote
Neuroscience research and science policy in Europe and beyond.
TO APPLY:
Candidates that
match the required profile will be continuously interviewed until the positions
are filled. Candidates
should send a resume and two (2)
reference letters to poirazi[at]imbb.forth.gr.
If possible, recommendations should be sent by the referees.
--
Panayiota Poirazi, Ph.D.
Research Director
Computational Biology Laboratory
Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology (IMBB)
Foundation of Research and Technology-Hellas (FORTH)
Vassilika Vouton, P.O.Box 1385, GR 70013, Heraklion, Crete
GREECE
Tel: +30 2810 391139
Fax: +30 2810 391101
Εmail:
poirazi@imbb.forth.grLab site:
www.dendrites.gr
Chair,