Post-doctoral researcher in Applied Mathematics W/M

Employeur

The university of Bordeaux is a great dynamic and responsible university that cares about the well-being of its staff. Joining us means working in a privileged environment within a particularly diverse and open professional community, benefiting from welcome and inclusion schemes, training and internal mobility. It means participating in an academic, scientific and human adventure. It means committing to meeting the challenges of the 21st century.

Join the Institute of Mathematics of Bordeaux (IMB)! This is a joint research unit of the CNRS, University of Bordeaux and Bordeaux. As one of the two host laboratories for the Doctoral School of Mathematics and Computer Science, the IMB brings together most of the mathematics research conducted in Bordeaux.

As part of the Numerical Poisson Nernst-Planck based models of cellular action potential – PNP-AP, funded by the National Research Agency, we are looking for a Post-Doctoral researcher W/M whose work will focus on the study of nonlinear partial differential equation systems modeling electrodiffusion in excitable cells.

The project also involves mixed teams from the Heart Rhythm Disease Institute (IHU Liryc), which specializes in the study, diagnosis, and treatment of electrical dysfunctions of the heart, a major cause of human mortality; and INRIA Bordeaux. Its agile project-teams, generally shared with academic partners, involve more than 3,500 scientists in tackling digital challenges, often at the interface of other disciplines.

Votre mission

Your mission will be to participate in the mathematical modeling of the electrodiffusion of ions in the vicinity of excitable cell membranes. It is a nonlinear system of parabolic partial differential equations. These equations finely describe the excitability phenomenon of biological cells such as neurons and cardiomyocytes.

There are three models, at different scales:

-        the Poisson-Hodgkin-Huxley model [1]: an elliptic equation coupled with a system of differential equations

-        the Poisson-Nernst-Planck model [4]: a nonlinear parabolic system from physics

-        the Nernst-Planck- Hodgkin-Huxley model [3]: an intermediate model obtained by asympotic analysis

We identified the following scientific challenges:

-        how to link these models together for the PNP and NP-HH models?

-        how to formulate transmission conditions at the level of biological membranes in a manner compatible with electrophysiological priors (Hodgkin-Huxley flows, guided by experiment)?

You will conduct research in applied mathematics on these questions, under the direction of Y. Coudière and C. Guerrier.

A first activity is to re-examine the existing asymptotic analysis, validate it rigorously and extend it to take into account phenomena neglected until then.

In a second step, it will be necessary to understand how it is possible to introduce ion flows through the cell membrane in these models, while making a link with the membrane currents introduced by Hodgkin and Huxley [2]. These currents are responsible for the excitability properties of cell membranes.

A third activity will be to compare the scale differences between neuroscience and cardiology, in space (long axons of neurons, specific structures such as dendritic spines, significant proximity of cardiomyocytes, role of T-tubules, etc.) and in time (an action potential of hundreds of milliseconds in cardiology, an action potential of a few milliseconds in neuroscience).

·       You understand the models and their context of use, with the possibility of digital exploration of the models, in connection with other project activities

·       You carry out analyses, asymptotic analyses, search for limits in non-linear partial differential equations

·       You are exploring the desirable properties of discretization methods that will be used to calculate approximate solutions, for example to preserve asymptotic properties

·       You contribute to scientific promotion through various forms of communication: scientific articles, participation in scientific events

 References:

1. (2021). Modeling excitable tissue: the emi framework: Springer International Publishing. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-61157-6

2. Hodgkin, A., & Huxley, A. (1952). A quantitative description of membrane current and its application to conduction and excitation in nerve. The Journal of physiology, 117(4), 500–544. doi:10.1113/jphysiol.1952.sp004764

3. Mori, Y., & Peskin, C. S. (2009). A numerical method for cellular electrophysiology based on the electrodiffusion equations with internal boundary conditions at membranes. Communications in Applied Mathematics and Computational Science, 4(1), 85–134. doi:10.2140/camcos.2009.4.85

4. Tuckwell, H. C. (1988). Introduction to theoretical neurobiology. : Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO9780511623202

Vos atouts / Vos talents

Holder of a PhD in Applied Mathematics, you have a good knowledge of modeling and analysis of partial differential equations (PDE).

·       You are comfortable in multidisciplinary teamwork.

·       You demonstrate the ability to work independently on your research

·       You have excellent writing and speaking skills, including in English (level C1/C2) to present your work to an international audience.

Do you recognize yourself? Apply! 

More information:

Based in Talence, Gironde, FRANCE – access by tramway line A (stop « Peixotto ») buses, bike. The laboratory is near the city-centre of Bordeaux and about 60 Km of the Atlantic coasts.

NB: the position is based in a laboratory in the Restrictive Zone, which requires an investigation prior to hiring, which can take up to 8 weeks.

18-month fixed-term contract

Gross monthly salary: from 2750 € to 3000 € according the salary grid

What we offer:

A training course adapted to support your job taking-up and your professional development

Up to 50 days of annual leave from the first year (in proportion to the arrival date)

Until 3 days per week remote work possible depending on the organization of the service

Participation in complementary social protection and access to social action mechanisms

75% coverage of the public transport subscription in Gironde

Sustainable mobility package for home trips–work

Access to a staff parking

Leisure, sport and culture offers for all staff

Recruitment process: Applications are reviewed as they arrive.

Candidates selected for an interview will be contacted by the Recruitment Officer for a first pre-qualification phone conversation. An interview with the supervisor will then be organised by videoconference.

Interested applicants should send a CV, brief statement of qualifications and basis for interest in the position, a list of your relevant publications, and the email addresses of 2 appropriate references.