Postdoctoral position: Development of new biphotonic fluorescent calcium probes for in vivo imaging

A two-year postdoctoral position is available in the Laboratory of Biomolecules as part of the DIPimaging project funded by the ANR (Agence Nationale de la Recherche) to work on the design of fluorescent calcium probe for in vivo imaging.

Goals:
Calcium is a ubiquitous secondary messenger involved in neuronal communications. Calcium detection thus allows visualizing neuronal networks but it requires efficient probes suited for in-depth in vivo imaging via two-photon microscopy. The goal is to develop new calcium sensors tailored for such applications, i.e. red-emitting probes optimized for two-photon excitation.

Laboratory:
The laboratory of biomolecules is affiliated to Sorbonne Université, CNRS and Ecole Normale Supérieure (ENS). It thus benefits from an outstanding scientific environment at the center of Paris.

The postdoctoral fellow will work in the team “peptides, glycoconjugates and metals in biology” and will be located at the chemistry department of the ENS. Research areas in the team span various aspects of chemical biology from oligosaccharides synthesis to bio-active metal complexes and fluorescent probes development. The newly refurbished labs are fully equiped for chemical synthesis, analysis and purification (NMR, HPLC…) as well as for biology and biophysics (UV and fluorescence spectroscopies, cell culture, protein expression, microscopy).

Missions:
This is a multidisciplinary project involving organic and biophysical chemistry. The role of the postdoctoral fellow will primarily consist in synthesizing the new fluorescent calcium probes and characterizing their optical properties using UV and fluorescence spectroscopies. Preliminary biological properties may also be assessed: cellular imaging, toxicity assay. Once a successful probe candidate is developed, more sophisticated imaging experiments will be performed by collaborators.
 
Applicants should send a resume and a cover letter with names and contact information of 2-3 professional references