Researcher R2.I

The Laboratory of Neurobiology has reached a new agreement with the Swedish company Umecrine to perform the study: Effects of golexanolone on fatigue, itching, cognitive and motor function, liver damage, peripheral inflammation and allopregnanolone levels in a Bile Duct Ligation (BDL) model of cholestasis in rats, with the support of Umecrine. This implies an occasional and unforeseen increase of work which makes necessary to contract a person who will participate in this study for a period of 3 months to perform the following tasks:

• Performing a model of cholestasis in rats by biliary ligation surgery
• Intragastric administration of drugs
• Obtainning serum and plasma samples from the rat saphenous vein
• Performance of behavioral tests: study of fatigue, itching, thermal sensitivity, motor coordination (MotoRater, Catwalk) and cognitive functions (Object Recognition Memory, Object Location Memory, Y-Maze…).
• Analysis of behavioral tests
• Perfusion of rats
• Extraction of rat brain areas
• Inmunohistochemistry (activation of microglía, astrocytes…)
• Evaluation of liver damage by histological analysis of fibrosis, inflammation.
• Analysis of inflammatory factors in blood by ELISA and Western blot
• Analysis of allopregnanolone and other neuroesteroids by HPLC-MS
• Isolation of peripheral mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from blood
• Cell cultures (PBMCs and TCD4+lymphocytes)
• Determination of interleukins in cell culture and serum.
• Determination of ammonium levels in blood.
• Analysis of the immunophenotype in blood cells
• Molecular techniques (western blot, PCR…)
• Use of the SPSS program: data analysis, correlations, ANOVA, ANCOVA, logistic regressions, sensitivity and specificity analysis, ROC curves...