Masha Prager-Khoutorsky

@mashapk.bsky.social

Neurobiology of hypothalamus🧠, Associate Professor @mcgillu, mom to 👦🏻👦🏼🐶, microscopy geek🔬, and amateur baker🧁 and musician🎹 masha-prager-khoutorsky.lab.mcgill.ca

🧪 The Sjöström Lab in Montreal is looking for a postdoc! We study cortical circuits, synaptic plasticity, and NMDAR signalling using custom 2-photon microscopy and optogenetics. We seek candidates with strong patch-clamp and/or 2-photon imaging expertise, and a relevant publication track record.

We are looking for an outstanding postdoctoral researcher to join our team at McGill University. The Sjöström lab studies neocortical circuits, with a focus on synaptic plasticity, NMDA receptor signaling, 2-photon optogenetics, and advanced 2-photon imaging. We are particularly interested in candidates with strong expertise in whole-cell patch-clamp electrophysiology and/or 2-photon imaging, and a solid track record of relevant publications.
Applicants should be experienced with whole-cell recordings and/or cutting-edge imaging approaches. Responsibilities will include performing experiments, analyzing and presenting data locally and internationally, writing manuscripts, and occasionally mentoring junior lab members.
Our lab is based at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, in vibrant, multicultural Montreal—a city that offers exceptional quality of life. McGill and its neighbouring universities form one of the most dynamic neuroscience communities in the world.
For examples of our current directions, see:
•	Chou et al The Innovation 2025, www.cell.com/the-innovation/fulltext/S2666-6758(24)00173-5
•	Wong et al Neuron 2024, www.cell.com/neuron/fulltext/S0896-6273(23)00767-5
The position is fully funded with a competitive salary. Candidates are also expected to apply for external funding, for which we provide strong support. Opportunities are available for both Canadian and international applicants.
To apply, please send a Letter of Intent, CV, brief research statement, and contact information for three referees to Dr. Jesper Sjöström (jesper.sjostrom@mcgill.ca). In the subject line, include "Postdoc" followed by your name.
Application deadline: July 31, 2025. 
Website: http://plasticity.muhc.mcgill.ca
McGill University is committed to diversity and equity in employment.

Excited to share our work by exceptional postdoc, Kyungdeok (KD) Kim. 2025 marks 10th anniversary of meningeal lymphatic discovery and I can’t be happier celebrating it with this work addressing how lymphatic dysfunction leads to cognitive deficits || www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Meningeal lymphatics-microglia axis regulates synaptic physiology

Meningeal lymphatics serve as an outlet for cerebrospinal fluid, and their dysfunction is associated with various neurodegenerative conditions. Previo…

sciencedirect.com

Our latest findings on social behavior circuits is out: how does the brain responds to social isolation? Terrific work by @dingliu.bsky.social et al. uncovering a circuit with similar neural architecture as physiological needs (hunger, thirst, sleep..). Detailed thread soon. rdcu.be/ebo63

A hypothalamic circuit underlying the dynamic control of social homeostasis

Nature - New data on brain-wide circuits centred around two interconnected hypothalamic neuron populations provide significant mechanistic insights into the emergence of social need during social...

rdcu.be

In our new preprint, we show that microglia can prune astrocyte processes to regulate synaptic transmission and hypothalamic neuron activity. This work represents a huge team effort spanning ~10 years, and we are very excited to finally share it with the world!

bioRxiv Neuroscience@biorxiv-neursci.bsky.social · last yr.

Microglia regulate neuronal activity via structural remodeling of astrocytes https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.02.18.638874v1

Huge congrats to Dr. Amirah Hicks on successfully defending her PhD! 🎉🥂👏 Amirah is my first trainee to earn a doctoral degree, and I couldn't be more proud of her accomplishments. I'm incredibly excited for the new chapter that lies ahead for her!

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