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Alberto BACCI

DR CNRS & Team Leader

Alberto's publications

Alberto BACCI

DR CNRS & Team Leader

Biography

1994: Masters’ Degree in Biological Sciences, Dept. of Physiology, University of Milano (Italy) – Ion channels and excitability of cortical neurons
2000: Ph.D., Dept. of Pharmacology, University of Milano (Italy) – cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying formation of synapses; modulation of synaptogenesis and synaptic function by astrocytes
1999 – 2005: Postdoctoral Fellow and Staff Scientist, Dept. of Neurology at Stanford University (USA) – Physiology of cortical circuits
2005 – 2011: Group Leader, European Brain Research Institute, Rome (Italy)
2011 – Present: DR CNRS and Team Leader, ICM – Institut du Cerveau | Paris Brain Institute; Sorbonne Université, CNRS, INSERM, Paris (France)

I obtained my Masters' degree at the Dept. of Physiology, University of Milano (Italy) where I worked with Dr. Enzo Wanke on ion channels and excitability of cortical neurons. I then did my Ph.D. thesis (Ph.D. obtained in 2000) at the Dept. of Pharmacology of the University of Milano, under the direction of Dr. Michela Matteoli. During my Ph.D., I was interested in the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying formation of synapses and how astrocytes modulates synaptogenesis and synaptic function. In 1999, I moved to the Dept. of Neurology at Stanford University in the lab led by Drs. John R. Huguenard and David A. Prince to study the physiology of cortical circuits using electrophysiological approaches. I started working on fast synaptic inhibition and diversity of cortical interneurons. I worked at Stanford as a postdoctoral fellow (1999 - 2003) and as a staff scientist (2003 - 2005). In December 2005, I was awarded an Armenise - Harvard Career Development Award to start my laboratory at the newly established European Brain Research Institute in Rome, Italy. There, I setup my own laboratory and kept working on the inhibitory control of cortical microcircuits. In 2011, following competitive recruitment, I moved my laboratory at the Institut du Cerveau (ICM) in Paris as a senior group leader. In 2012 I obtained a DR position at the CNRS. From 2016 to 2018 I served as the scientific director of the ICM.

Joana LOURENÇO

PhD, CR Inserm

Joana's publications

Joana LOURENÇO

Principal investigator, PhD, CR, INSERM

Biography

2006 – 2010: Ph.D. in Cellular Biology with full credits and honours from the University of Coimbra, Portugal
1999 – 2004: Biology degree with the classification of good from the University of Coimbra, Portugal

Research work

In the neocortex, sensory perception is achieved by a two-way communication between primary and associative cortices and is controlled by a rich diversity of GABAergic interneurons. In particular, perisomatic-targeting basket cells (BCs) form inhibitory synapses near the soma of the principal neurons (PNs). Plasticity of perisomatic inhibition mediated by parvalbumin (PV) interneurons can efficiently modulate the firing of PNs (Lourenço et al., 2014; 2020). Perisomatic inhibition, however, is not solely provided by PV interneurons but also by cholecystokinin (CCK)-expressing interneurons, which also express high levels of cannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB1). Yet, the function of this cell type within cortical circuits is elusive. Whether and how inhibition arising from CB1 basket cells can shape sensory information processing is a question that we are trying to tackle using a multidisciplinary approach. Understanding how different sources of perisomatic inhibition along with different neuromodulators shape PNs activity in vivo is at the center of my scientific interests.

Alessio QUARESIMA

PhD, Assoc. Prof. Sorbonne Univ.

Alessio's publications

Alessio Quaresima

Associate Professor, PhD

My research develops biophysically grounded models of cortical circuits to understand how neurons and networks implement computation. The work spans three interconnected themes: dendritic integration and nonlinear single-cell dynamics, synaptic plasticity and memory formation, and the functional specialization of cortical cell types — with a focus on sensory cortices.

Biography

2024- 2026 Postdoc in Bathellier Lab (Paris): Optimization of biophysical models against imaging and electrophysiology data
2019- 2024 Ph.D. in Neurobiology of Language: Examined the cellular and network dynamics underlying word comprehension.

Andrea AGUIRRE

Lab Manager, Ingénieure d’études

Andrea's publications

Andrea AGUIRRE

Lab manager

Biography

2009 – 2012: Masters’ Degree (M2): “Biologie Intégrative: Physiologie et Neurosciences, Spécialité Neurosciences”. Mention: AB; Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 (UCBL); Lyon, France

Professional experiences:

July 2014 – Present: Ingénieur d’études, CDI. ICM, Paris; Team: “Cellular Physiology of Cortical Microcircuits” (Dr. Alberto Bacci)
March 2013 – June 2014: Cadre, CDD. Centre de recherche de neurosciences de Lyon, Lyon. Team: “Waking” (Dr. Jian-Sheng Lin)
Sept. 2012 – Feb. 2013: Ingénieur d’études, CDD. Centre de recherche de neurosciences de Lyon, Lyon. Team: “Waking” (Dr. Laurent Seugnet)

Skill

Surgical expertise: stereotaxic injections, in utero electroporation, monocular deprivation
Anatomy and imaging : confocal, apotome. FIJI
Wetlab expertise: freezing microtome, vibratome, IHC on floating slice

Valentin RITOU

PostDoc, PhD

Valentin's publications

Valentin RITOU

Postdoctorant, PhD

Biography

I completed my undergraduate studies (2016–2019) in Biology and Neurosciences at the University of Bordeaux (France) and the University of Kyoto (Japan). My interest in neurodevelopment deepened during an internship in the Kageyama Laboratory at the Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University. I earned my master’s degree (2019–2021) in Neurosciences at Université Paris-Cité, where I conducted research in Valérie Voon's laboratory. My work focused on the effects of transcranial magnetic stimulation and deep-brain stimulation on cognitive flexibility and plasticity.
For my doctoral research (2021–2024), undertaken in the Glia-Glia and Glia-Neuron Interactions Group at Université Paris-Cité under the supervision of Cendra Agulhon, I explored the effects of chronic astrocyte GPCR signaling during the critical period of the primary visual cortex (V1). My research examined the impact of such aberrant astrocyte activation on synaptic transmission and plasticity, with implications for neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia. Throughout my PhD, I developed expertise in motor and social behavior assays, juvenile stereotaxic surgery, viral injections, in vivo electrophysiology, synapse quantification, confocal imaging, 3D quantification, Python programming, and big data analysis and management.
Currently, I am a postdoctoral researcher in the Bacci Lab. My project focuses on understanding the role of inhibitory circuits in Down syndrome, leveraging advanced methodologies such as in vivo Neuropixels recordings and opto-tagging.

Alejandro CARBALLOSA

PostDoc, PhD

Alejandro's publications

Alejandro CARBALLOSA

PostDoc, PhD

Biography

2014-2018: BS in Physics at the University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain
2018-2019: MSc in Complex Systems’ modelling at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain
2019-2023: PhD Cum Laude in Complex Systems and Networks from the University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain

Current work

Since February 2024, I am a postdoctoral researcher at the Laboratoire de Physique Théorique et Modélisation (LPTM) under the scientific supervision of prof. Alessandro Torcini in collaboration with prof. Alberto Bacci at Bacci’s Lab. My current research interest cover the development of nonlinear indicators to analyze the brain’s complexity, using for that purpose both experimental data-driven approaches and computational models of neural activity.

Antonella DAPINO

PostDoc, PhD

Antonella's publications

Antonella DAPINO

PostDoc, PhD

Biography

In 2023, I graduated with a Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree from Universidad de la República (Uruguay). From 2019 to 2026, I held teaching positions in the Department of Physiology at the Faculty of Medicine (Instructor, and later, Teaching Assistant).

Alongside my medical training, in 2025, I completed my PhD in Biological Sciences (PEDECIBA–UdelaR, specialized in Neuroscience). My PhD research was conducted at Dr. Sebastián Curti's lab, and it focused on elucidating the role of voltage-gated currents in shaping circuit dynamics supported by electrical synaptic transmission in the rodent brain, by means of cellular electrophysiology (whole-cell patch clamp) in acute brainstem slices, pharmacology and fluorescent dyes.

In 2026, I was awarded a Human Frontier Science Program (HFSP) Long-Term Fellowship, to pursue my postdoctoral project at Dr. Alberto Bacci's Lab. My project aims to elucidate the blueprints of circuit diversity across the cortical axis in the adult mouse brain, under the hypothesis that stability and plasticity of hierarchically-organized visual cortical networks is due to area-specific variations of the canonical circuits involving PV and CCK interneurons. By employing a multidisciplinary approach (mouse transgenic lines, ex- and in-vivo electrophysiology, viral-mediated expression of functional actuators, optogenetics, and anatomical analysis), we pursue to demonstrate functional hierarchical plasticity, challenging the current state of knowledge about the functionality of mature cortical circuitry.

Adrianna NOZOWNIK

PhD student

Adrianna's publications

Adrianna NOZOWNIK

PhD student

Biography

During my Masters in Biology, obtained in 2021 from University of Hamburg in Germany, I worked in Simon Wiegert’s lab. Since May 2022 I moved not only from Hamburg to Paris, but also from characterizing inhibitory optogenetic tools to characterizing inhibitory interneurons in Alberto Bacci’s lab. The idea behind the project is to understand better the integration of contextual information with visual information which is a process to create perception. For this, I investigate the properties of cortical Layer 1 interneurons that express the Cannabinoid receptor Type-1 and the associated plasticity and microcircuit to assess their putative role in gating inputs onto pyramidal cells of the primary visual cortex. Using in vitro electrophysiology, in vivo two-photon imaging and recording of spontaneous behaviors, I aim to characterize this CB1 positive population within the diverse types of Layer 1 interneurons and their contribution to primary visual cortex activity during the perception of visual inputs.

Killian ABRASSART

PhD student

Killian's publications

Killian ABRASSART

PhD Student

I earned my Master's degree in Biology with a specialization in Cellular and Integrative Neuroscience in 2023 from Sorbonne University in Paris. During this period, I worked with Véronique Marchand-Pauvert to identify a biomarker related to Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). This experience motivated me to transition from pre-clinical to more fundamental research. As part of my Ph.D. program, I am investigating how the endogenous presence or absence of perineuronal nets (PNN) expression around parvalbumin-positive (PV) cells in two adjacent visual cortical regions, V1 and V2m, can confer distinct electrophysiological properties. My research project will involve ex-vivo electrophysiological recordings with electrical and optogenetic thalamocortical stimulations, immunohistochemistry, and in-vivo recording.

Nathan MALLET

PhD student

Nathan MALLET

PhD student

I studied in the Biology Department at ENS Paris-Saclay from 2019 to 2023. In 2022, I obtained my master's degree at Sorbonne in Integrative Biology and Physiology with a focus on neuroscience. For my master's internship, I worked in Rebecca Piskorowski's and Vivien Chevaleyre's lab, using slice electrophysiology to study synaptic plasticity in area CA2 of the hippocampus. With the goal of expanding my skills in the in vivo field, I then joined the Sabatini lab at Harvard Medical School, where I used fiber photometry to measure changes in dopamine release during adolescence in mice. In September 2023, I joined the Bacci lab as a PhD student. I study the role of a subpopulation of VIP interneurons expressing the Cannabinoid receptor Type 1 in the V1 cortex. This subpopulation could be crucial in generating spontaneous activity in this area, such as activity induced by locomotion or arousal. Combining my previous experiences with in vivo and in vitro techniques, my project involves ex vivo electrophysiology and in vivo calcium imaging.

Ignat LAPATO-ZAHORSKI

PHD Student

Ignat's publications

Ignat LAPATO-ZAHORSKI

Ingénieur d’études

Mai-An NGUYEN

Ingénieure d’études

Mai-An NGUYEN

Ingénieur d’études

I am an engineer from Télécom Paris specialized in data science and human-computer interaction systems (graphical interface, VR, websites, apps) with a Bachelor in math and physics from Paris-Saclay University. I also got a M2 diploma in cognitive sciences at ENS-PSL in Paris. As an intern, I worked at the Institut de recherche pour le développement (IRD) in Hanoi, Vietnam, on a simulation VR serious game to raise awareness in children about environmental issues. I am now working at the BacciLab as an engineer to help the team on IT aspects.