Circuits neuronaux de la mémoire émotionnelle

Présentation

How do animals integrate new information to update previously encoded memories? What happens when this process is impaired?

The capacity to adapt to a dynamic environment is a fundamental ability for survival. For this, animals need to constantly integrate new information, update their representation of the world and adjust their behavior accordingly. A fundamental aspect of this process is the capacity to update previously encoded memories.

My lab combines whole-brain functional connectivity analysis with in vivo fiber photometry and closed-loop optogenetics to unravel how intense emotional memories can be attenuated. A particular focus is put on the contribution of hub structures in the midline thalamus that orchestrate the activity of distributed memory circuits in an integrated manner. In addition, we study pathological alterations within these thalamo-centered circuits in mouse models of fear-related disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder. Using a similar array of cutting-edge techniques, we aim at identifying novel strategies to revert these circuit alterations and open the path for novel therapeutical interventions.