CV Science

Didier Pinault PhD Neurosciences

Course and current status

I got my Doctorat-ès-Sciences in Neuroscience in 1990 (Université Paris-VI). I am the inventor of the juxtacellular recording-labeling technique. In the Martin Deschênes laboratory (Laval University, Quebec, Canada), I studied the anatomo-fonctional properties of the thalamic relay and reticular neurons. Since 1997, I have been an Inserm researcher devoted to understanding the pathophysiological cell-to-network dynamics of the functional connectivity between the cortex and the thalamus in rodent models of absence epilepsy and for schizophrenia, and for the development of innovative therapeutic concepts. I got the accreditation to supervise research in 2001 and published more than 50 papers in peer-reviewed journals.

Scientific summary

A modern approach of the mind-brain problem:

My goal is to develop, using preclinical models, innovative therapy to treat and prevent neuropsychiatric disorders. It is a conceptually- and data-driven long-term investigation based on the pathophysiological properties of neural networks. EEG combined with multisite cell-to-network exploration are implemented to measure the functional state of Cortico-Thalamo-Cortical systems under physiological, pathological, and therapeutic conditions. CTC systems are the fundamental, oscillating neural substrates of consciousness and attention-related sensorimotor and cognitive processes, and they are suitably electro-responsive to non-invasive, transcranial electrical stimulation.