Postdoctoral Fellow​/Research Scientist; Ph.D.) in Human Neural Circuit Physiology

Postdoctoral Fellow / Research Scientist (Ph.D.) in Human Neural Circuit Physiology

School:
Faculty of Arts and Sciences

Department:
Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology

The laboratory of Prof. Paola Arlotta invites applications for a Ph.D.

-level Postdoctoral Fellow or Research Scientist with strong expertise in systems-level electrophysiology and neural data science. The successful candidate will investigate human neural circuit physiology and neuronal dynamics in human brain organoids, focusing on CNS disorders such as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The Arlotta Lab develops human cortical organoid models to understand principles of human cortical development and how they are perturbed in neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric disease.

This position centers on high-throughput functional interrogation of human neural circuits and on building new experimental and analytical pipelines to link cellular and circuit phenotypes to genetic risk.

• Design and execute experiments to characterize single-cell and network-level activity in human cortical organoids and related in vitro systems.
• Lead the implementation and optimization of high-throughput functional platforms, including single-unit extracellular recordings (high-density MEA, neural probes) and calcium/voltage-sensitive dye imaging for large-scale population dynamics.
• Develop and integrate novel technologies for functional circuit analysis; independently evaluate, set up, and optimize new hardware and software platforms.
• Build and maintain robust data analysis pipelines for large-scale electrophysiological and imaging datasets, including spike sorting, network analysis, and state/dynamics characterization.
• Collaborate with lab members generating organoids from neurotypical and ASD-associated genetic backgrounds to identify convergent and divergent network phenotypes.
• Present results in internal and external meetings, contribute to manuscripts and grant proposals, and mentor students and research assistants.

• Ph.D. in Neuroscience, Biomedical Engineering, Physics, Computer Science, or a related quantitative field.
• Deep expertise in electrophysiology signal analysis, data science, and programming, demonstrated by publications and/or software tools in extracellular recordings (single- and multi-unit activity, spike sorting, LFP, synchrony, connectivity, oscillations) and quantitative analysis of network activity from MEA and/or imaging.
• Proficiency in Python, MATLAB, or similar languages for data processing, statistics, and visualization.
• Substantial hands-on experience with systems neuroscience methods, such as high-density MEA recordings or other multi-site extracellular platforms, calcium imaging and/or voltage-sensitive dye imaging, whole-cell patch-clamp recordings, and synaptic physiology (evoked and spontaneous synaptic potentials, plasticity paradigms).
• Demonstrated ability to independently design, troubleshoot, and execute experiments and manage complex datasets.
• Strong written and oral communication skills and a record of peer-reviewed publications commensurate with career stage.

• Experience with human iPSC-derived neurons, brain organoids, or brain slices.
• Familiarity with modern spike sorting toolkits, machine learning or statistical modeling of neural data, and reproducible code practices (version control, documentation).
• Background in neurodevelopmental disorders, circuit neuroscience, or ASD-related research.
• Interest in combining electrophysiology and imaging with single-cell genomics, spatial transcriptomics, or computational modeling.
• Enthusiasm for evaluating, adopting, and innovating new experimental technologies (e.g., new MEA platforms, optical tools, closed-loop systems).

The lab encourages applications to read more about our scientific goals on our website. The Arlotta lab is working to become an equitable and inclusive community, recognizing inequity and bias within academia and dedicated to continuous self-education and activism. Future members are strongly encouraged to actively participate in these endeavors as part of their scientific career.

$67,600-$80,000. Pay offered to the selected candidate is dependent on factors such as years of experience, training or qualification, field of scholarship, and accomplishments in the field.

Harvard University is committed to equal opportunity and non-discrimination. We seek talent from all parts of society and the world, and we strive to ensure everyone at Harvard thrives. Our differences help our community advance Harvard's academic purposes.

Harvard has an equal employment opportunity policy that outlines our commitment to prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, religion, disability, or any other characteristic protected by law or identified in the university's…