Contribution of the Cardiac nervous system to cardiac dysautonomia in
Parkinson’s disease.

A postdoctoral position funded by The Fondation Pour la Recherche Médicale (FRM) is available for a project in collaboration between PRéTI (Physiopathologie et Régulation des Transports Ioniques, UR24184) and LNEC (Laboratoire de Neurosciences Expérimentales et Cliniques INSERM U1084) laboratories of the University of Poitiers, France.

Starting date: Autumn 2025
Duration : 36 months (12 months plus extension 24 months)

The post-doctoral fellow will work under the joint supervision of Aurélien Chatelier (leader of the “Arrhyhmias and Cellular Interface” group within PRéTI) and Pierre-Olivier Fernagut ( leader of the team Neuroadaptation – Neurodegeneration within LNEC). The consortium clusters a complementarity set of skills and expertise in cardiac physiology and electrophysiology, modelling of parkinsonian syndromes and functional neuroanatomy.

Scientific project: Parkinson’s disease (PD) is characterized by the widespread accumulation of alpha-synuclein and the degeneration of several neuronal ensembles. Besides cardinal motor symptoms, patients suffer from cardiac dysautonomia and are characterized by an increased risk for cardiac disorders such as left ventricular hypertrophy, heart failure, arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death, due to a dysfunction of autonomic sympathetic and parasympathetic systems. The final effector of cardiac regulation is the intrinsic cardiac nervous system (ICNS).

Despite evidence for alpha-synuclein accumulation in the heart in PD, a potential role for the ICNS in mediating cardiac dysfunction in PD has never been investigated. This project will associate teams with expertise in neurodegeneration on the first hand and cardiac physiology on the second hand to evaluate whether a pathological remodeling of the ICNS may directly contribute to cardiac dysautonomia in PD. This project will advance the field by providing new insight in the contribution of the heart-brain axis in the pathophysiology of PD.

Key techniques involved: surgery, viral vectors, telemetry, ECG recording and carotidal arterial blood pressure measurement, whole heart Langendorff perfusion, immunofluorescence imaging and histology, Microelectrode and whole-cell patch clamp electrophysiology.

Applicant: Applicants should have a PhD in Physiology or Neuroscience. The job will require hands on experience with rodent research (including surgery) and skills in cardiac physiology, cellular electrophysiology, microscopy as well as data analysis and science communication. Independence, strong motivation as well as excellent communication skills in English are
required.

Life in Poitiers: Poitiers is located between Bordeaux and Paris with rapid access via the TGV train (1h20 min from Paris and Bordeaux). Moreover, regarding to the central location of Poitiers in the west part of France, it’s easy in less than 3 hours to visit touristic regions
(Bretagne, Auvergne); 1h30 to reach the atlantic coast (La Rochelle, Ile de Ré). The cost of transportation and rent are very reasonable, making it an attractive city for students (25 000 students). Additionally, Poitiers offers a high quality of life with its beautiful architecture and rich culture. (https://visitpoitiers.fr/en/)

How to apply: Please send your cover letter and complete application documents with CV (including a brief description of research experience and doctoral thesis), references/recommendation letters to aurelien.chatelier@univ-poitiers.fr. Please indicate « Postdoctoral Scientist » in the subject line.

Deadline for application: april 30, 2025.