PHD FELLOW IN EMOTIONAL MULTIBRAIN DYNAMICS (C)

IIT invites excellent candidates to apply to its PhD program organized in collaboration with the Open University; this international PhD program confers Doctorates in Health, Sustainable and Human Technologies.
n order to be admitted into the ARC program, the minimum requirements are i.
Masters-level degree, which broadly corresponds to a 4/5-year undergraduate MSc/MChem/Meng-style degree or to a postgraduate Masters in the British system, or to a second level University degree in Italy; ii.
a grade corresponding to an upper second class (2.
) or a merit in the UK system or in the Italian system.
Candidates with lower grades but redeeming features (publications, specific expertise) are requested to contact the potential supervisors before applying; iii.
where English is not the applicant's first language, a valid IELTS (International English Language Testing System) certificate.
The minimum acceptable score is an overall 6.
, with no less than 6.
in any of the four categoriesOne PhD fellow position will be available from April 1st in the Genetics of Cognition Research Line led by Dr.
Francesco Papaleo.
itle of the project.
Brain Circuits of Social Cognition and Neurodevelopmental Disorders.
ackground.
Social behavior refers to several processes associated with interactions of the individual with others.
Dysfunctions in these abilities are hallmark of neurodevelopmental disorders such as schizophrenia and autism.
But are all social interactions qualitatively the same? Does "social interaction' have the same meaning for different subjects? What are the brain mechanisms underlying social interactions, social choices and the perception/reaction to different emotions in others? Are there multibrain cell- and circuit-specific mechanisms that are critically involved in clinically relevant alterations of emotion recognition?We are a multicultural and multi-disciplinary group carrying out common research on the social brain to advance our knowledge on these questions.
escription.
The research project aims to evaluate cortical circuits subtending the developmental trajectories of higher order social cognitive functions, in normal condition and genetic conditions characterized by aberrant social behaviors.
A special focus will be on elucidating the cellular-level mechanisms underlying multibrain dynamics in different social contexts.
To achieve this goal, using a variety of genetically modified mice, you will employ a combined approach strictly linking advanced behavioral outputs (complex socio-cognitive tasks including emotion recognition, cooperation, altruism, hierarchy, social reward etc.) with circuit-level manipulations with in vivo chemo- and opto-genetics, in vivo miniscopes, in vivo fiberphotometry, and in vivo electrophysiology.
You will be part of an exciting and international working environment.
xternal ReferenceMaltese et al., Nature Neuroscience ; Dautan et al., Nature Neuroscience ; Scheggia et al., Nature Neuroscience ; Scheggia et al., Nature Neuroscience ; Ferretti et al., Current Biology .
ain Supervisor.
Francesco Papaleo (Genetics of Cognition)Essential expertise.
i.
A master degree in biology, neuroscience, pharmacology, medicine, bio-engineering, computational sciences, mathematics or a related discipline.; ii.
Experience with in vivo preclinical studies; iii.
Excellent communication and writing skills in English.;Desirable expertise.
i.
Experimental experience in working with in vivo preclinical studies ii.
Experience in coding.
iii.
Licences in experimental animal research.
iv.
Experience in social processes and neurodevelopmental disorders.
ow to apply.
Prospective students must submit using the online form the following documents 2-page CV, which includes studies, expertise and achievements.
-page research statement, which includes the choice of a project from the list above and a justification of the choice.
Only if robustly justified, the student may signal their interest also for a second project, but there is no guarantee that this will be taken into account by the selection panel.
transcript of undergraduate and postgraduate studies.
valid IELTS certificate, obtained no more than two years before the proposed registration date.
ontact details of two referees.
eadline for application.
January 25th .
stituto Italiano di Tecnologia, with its headquarters in Genoa, Italy, is a non-profit institution with the primary goal of creating and disseminating scientific knowledge and strengthening Italy%27s technological competitiveness.
IIT%27s research endeavour focuses on high-tech and innovation, representing the forefront of technology with possible application from medicine to industry, computer science, robotics, life sciences and nanobiotechnologies.
stituto Italiano di Tecnologia is an Equal Opportunity Employer that actively seeks diversity in the workforce.
lease note that the data that you provide will be used exclusively for the purpose of professional profiles' evaluation and selection, and in order to meet the requirements of Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia.
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