- Postdoctoral Position
- Paris Descartes University
- Two Photon Imaging of
Interneurons
Until recently the axonal compartment of
brain neurons was mainly viewed as an execution device that fires an action
potential whenever a certain potential threshold is reached in the soma. More
recent results suggest however that the axon has sophisticated computational
capabilities that modulate its transmitter release even in the absence of spike
firing. Our laboratory has thus demonstrated the presence of calcium-store-mediated
SCaTs (for Spontaneous Calcium Transients) in the axons and synaptic terminals
of cerebellar interneurons, and it has shown that SCaTs lead to transmitter
release without action potentials. More recent results from our laboratory show
that the activation of axonal GABA receptors likewise modulates transmitter
release in the absence of spike firing. The goal of the project will be to
examine the relations between the activation of axonal GABA receptors and
axonal calcium, with the aim to decipher the mechanisms of transmitter release
control by presynaptic GABA receptors. Methods will include two-photon imaging
of interneuron axons in conjunction with patch-clamp recordings in cerebellar
slices.
This position is available in the context of
a collaborative project between the groups of Isabel Llano, David Ogden and
Alain Marty, which is funded by the French "Agence National de la
Recherche".
The laboratory housing these groups,
"Laboratory of Cerebral Physiology" is located in the historical
center of Paris and is part of a large scientific community with a strong
emphasis in neurosciences.
- http://www.biomedicale.univ-paris5.fr/physcerv/
- 3 year funding starting September 2009
- Send applications and CV to:
- Isabel Llano
- Laboratoire de Physiologie Cérébrale
- 45 rue des Saints Pères
- 75006 Paris, France
- isabel.llano@parisdescartes.fr
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