Research Intern Positions: Multi-modal Translational Neuroimaging
Dr. Lidia Cid, Dr. David Hike, Dr. Yuanyuan Jiang, Dr. Xiaochen Liu (Postdocs) and Dr. Xin Yu (Principle Investigator), Laboratory of Translational Neuroimaging and Neural Control, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital – Harvard-MIT Health Sciences & Technology, Radiology/Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School
fall 2022


The Translational Neuroimaging & Neural Control (TNNC) Lab of the Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging is looking for highly motivated and enthusiastic individuals to join our group as research assistants (interns). We are located at the Navy Yard campus of MGH and have access to 4.7T, 9.4T, and 14T animal MR scanner, and multiple 3T and 7T human MR scanners. We are highlighting several ongoing projects led by talented postdoctoral fellows in TNNC: (1) Awake the Unawakened: Dr. Cid is studying the neuronal basis of coma induction and emergence in animal models. She would like to investigate the neuronal network changes both in macro- and micro-level by conducting multimodal imaging techniques including the recording of calcium signaling and high field MRI.. (2) Simulate Orthostatic Stress: Dr. Hike leads the high-field functional MRI project to investigate dynamic brain function in animal models, specifically using single-vessel fMRI. We are interested in understanding the brain functional changed due to orthostatic stress which can be linked to long-term space travel. (3) Photons Meet Protons: Dr. Jiang combines the fiber photometry-base brain dynamic signal recordings from genetically encoded sensors with advanced fMRI methods to study the neuro-glial-vascular coupling in normal and diseased animals. (4) Pupil Predicts Degeneration: Dr. Liu develops neural network-based prediction models to study fMRI-pupil relationship and dissect different neuromodulatory circuits underlying the brain state-dependent pupil size changes, as a biomarker of degenerative brains. The research assistant will conduct in-vivo experiments in rodents, assist in data collection, and data analysis under the supervision of postdoctoral researchers and PI. Responsibilities and Expectations: Research assistants work in the lab for 4-10 hours per week and attend weekly course meetings during which postdocs discuss their research interests and the current state of their research projects. They will assist in experimental design and troubleshooting, learn to handle animals, conduct in-vivo experimentations under the supervision of postdocs, and assist in collecting data (optical recordings, electrical recordings, and fMRI scans). Additional Information: There will be a biweekly MR basic course delivered by Prof. Yu to help lab members when learning how to use MR scanner. The candidate will also learn to understand MR image acquisition and multi-modal signal processing. We anticipate funding being available for work-study eligible students, and we encourage such students to apply. Students should check with their Financial Aid Officer to determine if they are work-study eligible before applying. Laboratory website is at https://tnnc.mgh.harvard.edu and Prof. Xin Yu’s webpage is at https://connects.catalyst.harvard.edu/Profiles/display/Person/166876. To Apply: please email C.V. to Prof. Xin Yu: xyu9@mgh.harvard.edu and specify the project that you are interested. (posted 8/2022)