Friday, April 5, 2013

France: Postdoc position in Neurosciences at GRAP INSERM ERI24

"One major predicting factors of adult alcohol addiction is the age of the first experience with alcohol. Today, young people are drinking alcohol early in life, heavily and rapidly, alternating with abstinence periods; the so-called “binge-drinking” characterized by high level of alcohol intoxication, drunkenness and possibly ethylic coma. Alcohol disturbs cognitive functions such as learning and memory and the hippocampus of young people is highly sensitive regarding the effects of alcohol on synaptic plasticity, the cellular mechanism of memory. However, we do not know the exact cellular and molecular mechanisms affected by alcohol when consumed in a binge-drinking pattern.
We developed animal models of binge-drinking in rat and showed that alcohol exposure during adolescence increase motivation to drink alcohol at adult age (Alaux-Cantin S et al 2012), suggesting that binge-drinking did change brain functioning on the long-term. We also recently found that bidirectional synaptic plasticity in the hippocampus was differentially affected by a binge-like pattern of alcohol intoxication and that some of the effects are delayed, suggesting developing deleterious mechanisms during the ‘withdrawal’ period when blood alcohol levels returned to zero. We wish now to better understand at cellular level the effects of alcohol in the hippocampus by measuring its effects on both NMDA and GABA receptors function during synaptic plasticity. Molecular mechanisms will be addressed with pharmacology and molecular biology. Learning performances will be tested in an 8-arms radial maze. For this purpose, we sought a highly motivated candidate for a post-doc position. This candidate should have a PhD in Neurosciences with a great experience in patch-clamp recordings on acute slice. Personal autonomy with the recording set-up and computerized method of analysis is compulsory to the position. Experience in the field of drug addiction would be a plus but is not obligatory."

Closing date:       -the deadline is not set

Contact Information
Pr Pierrefiche Olivier
INSERM ERi 24 GRAP
Pharmacy
1 rue des Louvels
80110 Amiens
France
Phone:    
Fax:    
E-mail:     olivier.pierrefiche@u-picardie.fr
Website:     http://www.u-picardie.fr/decouverte/sante/pagesliees/grap/accueilgrap.html