PhD student Advanced Diffusion MRI of the Human Brain Cortex

Are you passionate about brain research, with a background in neuroanatomy, neuroscience or a related field, and enjoy analysing neuroimaging data, scripting and data analysis? And are you passionate about medical imaging and its potential to improve our understanding of the brain and of its damage in dementia?

The cortex is the outermost layer of the brain, which contains the vast majority of neurons organized in a layered structure. Mapping the organization of fibers in the cortex would allow us to understand how the brain processes information within its local circuits, and to understand their role in neurological disorders such as dementia.

This project is part of an ERC project where we will develop a next-generation diffusion MRI acquisition to map the organization and properties of fibers in the human brain cortex, both post-mortem and in-vivo. You will:

• Evaluate the sensitivity of our new measurements to pathology (e.g., neurodegeneration, vascular injury) in post-mortem human brain samples.
• Acquire MRI data of healthy volunteers and study the distribution of cortical fibers in ageing.
• Perform a proof-of-concept study in patients visiting the memory clinic.
• Evaluate the relation between structural and functional properties of cortical fibers.

This research will be conducted at the Image Sciences Institute, housed within the Imaging and Oncology Division of the University Medical Center Utrecht, in collaboration with the Departments of Anatomy and Neurology. The division is internationally recognized for its research on image acquisition, image analysis, artificial intelligence, and image-guided interventions, and has one of the largest concentrations of medical imaging researchers in Europe.

For more information, visit www.isi.uu.nl and www.imago.uu.nl.

• You speak Dutch at a sufficient level to communicate with healthy volunteers (B2+).
• You hold a Master’s degree in neuroscience, medicine, or a related field; a technical degree with affinity for medical imaging (such as biomedical engineering) is also suitable when supported by proven experience in brain research.
• You have a strong affinity with scripting and applying complex pipelines, preferably with experience in neuroimaging.
• You enjoy working in an interdisciplinary environment that connects engineering and clinical application.
• You have programming experience in Python, MATLAB, or similar languages.
• You are motivated, collaborative, and communicative.

• A salary between € 3108 and € 3939 gross per month (salary scale OIO), based on full-time employment (36 hours). 
• A four-year contract, starting in March or April.
• Year-end bonus of 8.3% and holiday allowance of 8%. 
• Pension insurance with ABP. We take care of approximately 70% of the monthly contribution. 
• 100% public transport reimbursement. Are you coming on foot, by bike or by car? You will then receive a reimbursement of € 0.18 per km (by car up to a max. of 40 km one way). 
• Possibilities to develop yourself personally and professionally. 
• The option to select additional employment benefits in exchange for gross salary, such as purchasing a bicycle and memberships.