Doctoral student in Medical Science – Molecular

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Doctoral position in Medical Science

Project title: The role of calcium signaling during neural development in bipolar disorder

The Department of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry is located at the Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology at the Faculty of Medicine at Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg. At the Department research is conducted on human behaviour, neuropsychiatric processes as well as psychiatric treatment and diagnosis in close collaboration with Västra Götaland region and a number of international partners. We participate in the undergraduate programmes in Medicine and within The National Research School in Psychiatry/Southwest Sweden. At the Department there are some 15 research groups and four research centers.

General information about being a doctoral student at the University of Gothenburg can be found on the university’s doctoral student pages: https://medarbetarportalen.gu.se/doktorand/?languageId=100001&skipSSOCheck=true    

Duties   

The PhD education in Medical Science comprises carrying out a scientific project and completing at least 30 credits of courses at third-cycle level. The doctoral student must also write a scientific compilation thesis or monograph corresponding to at least 120 credits. For more information about third-cycle studies at Sahlgrenska Academy, see https://www.gu.se/en/sahlgrenska-akademin/doctoral-studies

Project: Bipolar disorder is a serious condition without clear pathophysiology. It is characterized by alternating episodes of mania and depression with asymptomatic intervals in-between. One common treatment is lithium; to which not all patients respond. The disorder has high heritability and genes play an essential role, although we do not know in what ways. In large genetic studies, variants of a calcium channel genes have been reported to be associated with bipolar disorder. Since before, we know that this gene – CACNA1C – plays an important role during neural development and in the adult brain. See for instance Smedler et al. PNAS 2022.

The purpose of this project is to investigate what role calcium signaling in general and CACNA1C in particular, plays in the development of bipolar disorder. To achieve this, we work with so called induced pluripotent stem cells, derived from skin cells of patients and controls. We have cells from individuals with both the common and the risk allele of CACNA1C. These cells are then developed to cortical neurons and studied in the laboratory. By mimicking the molecular signaling in the embryo, we first push the cells to neural progenitors and then mature neurons. This process takes a couple of months. Next, we will perform large-scale experiments using RNA sequencing of both bulk tissue and single cells. We will compare cells from individuals with the common allele with cells from individuals with the risk allele of CACNA1C. The plan is also to create genetically modified versions of cells, where we edit the common allele to the risk allele using CRISPR technique. The neurons will also be assessed with functional tools such as calcium imaging and electrophysiology. To conclude, we will investigate the role of the mental disorder risk gene CACNA1C during neural development and in the function of mature neurons.

Education at third-cycle level comprises four years of full-time study, and leads to a doctoral degree.  As part of your employment as a doctoral student, you may have departmental duties corresponding to up to 20 % of full-time employment, distributed throughout your study period. Departmental duties usually consist of teaching at first- and second-cycle levels, but may also include research and administration.    

Eligibility   

Education at third-cycle level requires general eligibility and specific eligibility as set out in the general syllabus for the subject.  

The general eligibility requirements for education at third-cycle level are:
1. having completed a degree at second-cycle level, or
2. the fulfilment of course requirements totalling at least 240 credits, of which at least 60 credits must be at second-cycle level, or
3. the acquisition of equivalent knowledge in some other way, either in Sweden or abroad.
Specific entry requirements for this subject, according to the general syllabus, are:
having completed the English B/6 course or is considered to have acquired equivalent knowledge through previous studies.   

Assessment criteria   

The selection of applicants who are considered to have the ability required to benefit from the study programme and who meet the general and specific eligibility requirements are assessed based on the following documented qualifications:
– specific knowledge and skills within the subject area and related research fields
– experience of scientific theory and relevant research methodology
– scientific analysis and presentation verified through thesis, degree project, scientific journals or the like.    

Documented experience of cell culturing, preferably IPS cells, is of merit. Knowledge about and experience of common molecular biology methods (preferably CRISPR) is desirable.

Employment   

Once you have been admitted for education at third-cycle level, you will be employed as a doctoral student at the University of Gothenburg. The provisions for employment as a doctoral student can be found in ordinance SFS 1993:100. Initial employment as a doctoral student may apply for a maximum of one year, and may be renewed by a maximum of two years at a time. A doctoral student may be employed as a doctoral student for a maximum of eight years, but the total period of employment may not be longer than the equivalent of full-time education at third-cycle level for four years.   

Location: Sahlgrenska Academy, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, Department of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry. Extent: 100%. First day of employment: as agreed.

The University applies a local agreement on salaries for doctoral students.   

Contact information 

For more information about the project please contact the principal supervisor,
Erik Smedler, Associate Professor, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology,
e-mail: [email protected]  

Unions 

Union representatives at the University of Gothenburg can be found here: 
https://www.gu.se/om-universitetet/jobba-hos-oss/hjalp-for-sokande      

Application   

You can apply to be admitted for education at third-cycle level via the University of Gothenburg’s recruitment portal. It is your responsibility to ensure that the application is complete as per the vacancy notice, and that the University receives it by the final application deadline.   

You must include the following, in pdf format

• Personal letter
• CV
• Diploma and transcripts showing that you meet with the general entry requirement
• Proof of completion of English 6 course or the acquired equivalent knowledge through previous studies

If your degree is from a university outside of Sweden, make sure that you attach a diploma and full transcripts that makes assessing your degree easier.  

If your degree has not been verified by a Swedish authority you need to provide contact details to the issuing university, registrar or similar, that can verify the degree at our request.

For information on what you need to submit in order to fulfill the English language requirement see https://www.universityadmissions.se/en/entry-requirements/english-language-requirements/

Applications must be received by: 2022-11-14

Information for International Applicants 

Choosing a career in a foreign country is a big step. Thus, to give you a general idea of what we and Gothenburg have to offer in terms of benefits and life in general for you and your family/spouse/partner please visit: 

https://www.gu.se/en/about-the-university/welcome-services
https://www.movetogothenburg.com/  

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