2024 BNA Scholars announced
15th March 2024
The Neural Control of Movement Lab (http://ncm.wp.st-andrews.ac.uk), within the School of Psychology & Neuroscience at the University of St Andrews (Scotland, UK), currently has a PhD studentship available (beginning January, 2021) for an enthusiastic and highly motivated student with a background in neuroscience. The appointed student will investigate the roles of spinal cholinergic interneurons (ref. 1) in the regulation of respiratory control circuits in health and disease. This exciting new project will be headed by Professor Gareth Miles (University of St Andrews) and conducted in collaboration with Dr Michael Lane’s laboratory (Drexel University, Philadelphia, USA; http://www.spinalrepair.org). The student will carry out a series of experiments, using state-of-the-art electrophysiological, imaging and molecular genetic techniques applied to mouse models, to determine the fundamental mechanisms by which cholinergic interneurons regulate respiratory circuits and examine the benefits of targeting cholinergic interneurons as part of rehabilitation therapies for Spinal Cord Injury (ref. 2, 3)
This is a fully funded PhD studentship, which covers tuition fees and a stipend for the successful candidate.
To apply, find the programme through St Andrews' website here.
Funding Notes
Fully funded by a PhD studentship awarded to Prof Miles by TENOVUS Scotland. This covers fees (Home rate), student stipend and research costs.
It may be possible to source additional funds to cover the costs associated with international fees.
References
1. Nascimento F, Broadhead MJ, Tetringa E, Tsape E, Zagoraiou L, Miles GB (2020). Synaptic mechanisms underlying modulation of locomotor-related motoneuron output by premotor cholinergic interneurons. eLife. 9:e54170, doi: 10.7554/eLife.54170.
2. Zholudeva LV, Karliner JS, Dougherty KJ, Lane MA (2017). Anatomical Recruitment of Spinal V2a Interneurons into Phrenic Motor Circuitry after High Cervical Spinal Cord Injury. J Neurotraum. 34:3058–3065.
3. Zholudeva LV, Qiang L, Marchenko V, Dougherty KJ, Sakiyama-Elbert SE, Lane MA (2018). The Neuroplastic and Therapeutic Potential of Spinal Interneurons in the Injured Spinal Cord. Trends Neurosci. 41: 625-639.
Please direct all enquires to Prof Gareth Miles: gbm4@st-andrews.ac.uk.