About
Depression and anxiety disorders are common mental illnesses and often associated with addictions (e.g. tobacco, alcohol and psychostimulants). Stress and drugs of abuse constitute environmental risk factors facilitating or precipitating the appearance of these pathologies. These behavioral alterations can be modeled in rodents following repeated exposure to stressful events or to drugs of abuse. We are interested in the neural circuits that underlie the perception of these stimuli, whether rewarding or aversive. To do this, we use chemo- and opto-genetic tools coupled with molecular, electrophysiological and behavioral approaches associated with preclinical models of these pathologies. Our goal is to be able to develop therapies based on the modulation of neural circuits in order to treat the behavioral manifestations of these disorders.