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UK: Postdoc Position electrophysiology 2012

Two post-doctoral positions are immediately available at the Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology, Yale University, in the newly established laboratory of Erdem Karatekin who is interested in developing and applying new technologies to study fundamental membrane processes and their physiological implications.
The first project will combine in vitro electrical recordings of synaptic vesicle fusion with single molecule imaging to study the dynamics and regulation of fusion pores. The project combines microfabrication, electrophysiological, cell biological and imaging techniques.
Requirements:
Previous expertise in electrophysiology is a must and additional expertise in any of the other areas listed above is highly desirable.
The new technology that is being developed is an outgrowth from our previous work (Karatekin et al. PNAS 2010, 107:3517-3521; Meunier et al. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2011, 50:5081-5084; Smith et al. Biophys. J. 2011, 101:1794-1804, Karatekin and Rothman, Nature Protocols, in press).
The second project aims to develop a local probe of membrane nanomechanics with an optical read-out. The probe’s response to various membrane deformations will be calibrated in vitro using micropipette aspiration and tether pulling techniques. Subsequently, the probe will be used in a number of physiological contexts to characterize membrane stresses that naturally arise in vivo.
Requirements:
Expertise in membrane biophysics (especially micropipette techniques) and basic knowledge in cell biology and physiology, and imaging techniques are required.
Department:
The exceptionally rich scientific environment at the Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology and the Yale Medical School is augmented by the newly established interdisciplinary Biodesign Institute of which Dr. Karatekin’s laboratory is one of the first members.
Contact:
Candidates must be highly motivated, demonstrate initiative and creativity, and communicate effectively. If interested, please send (as pdf files) a cover letter briefly describing your research interests, a curriculum vitae (including a publications list), and full contact information for three references to erdem.karatekin@yale.edu or Erdem Karatekin, Ph. D., Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology, School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520.