How can we study the evolution of behaviours and their neural bases?
Research on behaviour and neural bases at NeuroMarseille
“Mechanistic” cognitive neuroscience aims at identifying the generic dynamics of neuronal circuits that underlie complex behaviours and at understanding how organisms interact adaptively with their environment. These empirical and theoretical approaches are used by 47 teams in Marseille to understand how the activity of neurons, whether taken in isolation or within small networks or larger systems, generates adaptive behaviour. By encouraging collaborations between teams using different models, with comparable behavioural and computational paradigms, NeuroMarseille will contribute to a better identification of generic neural circuits and mechanisms and a better understanding of how evolution has shaped brain processes and behavioural functions.
To link it to research, NeuroSchool’s training courses include many course units related to this theme. Below you will find the list of the teams working on this theme as well as the related course units.
The research teams
The Marseille teams are internationally recognised for their research on the neural bases of vegetative (breathing), sensory and motor (vision, hearing, proprioception, locomotion), cognitive (control of action, perception, memory) and higher-order cognitive functions (decision-making, language, social skills). As Marseille is a major European site for comparative psychology and neurobiology of primates, the teams have a wide range of animal models at their disposal, from invertebrates (e.g. drosophila) to vertebrates (rodents, human and non-human primates).
Teams working on behaviour
| List of the teams | Team leader(s) | Institute | Campus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cognition and Pathophysiology of basal ganglia | Ouagazzal Abdel-Mouttalib | LNC | Saint-Charles |
| Sensory and Cognitive Rehabilitation | Béatrice Alescio-Lautier, Liliane Borel | LNSC | Saint-Charles |
| Neurodevelopment of motor and social cognition | Christine Assaiante | LNC | Saint-Charles |
| Basal Ganglia, Motivation and Reward | Christelle Baunez | INT | Timone |
| Neural basis of communication | Pascal Belin | INT | Timone |
| Development and cognitive aging | Agnès Blaye | LPC | Saint-Charles |
| Neural bases of sensori-motor behavior | Jean Blouin | LNC | Saint-Charles |
| ICS: Sensorimotor Cognition Interactions | Lionel Bringoux | ISM | Luminy |
| Plasticity and Physio-pathology of rhythmics Motor networks | Frédéric Brocard | INT | Timone |
| Cognitive Motor Control | Thomas Brochier | INT | Timone |
| Attention, cerebral dynamics and chronometry | Boris Burle | LNC | Saint-Charles |
| Perception and attention | Eric Castet, Françoise Vitu | LPC | Saint-Charles |
| Pathophysiology and Therapy of Vestibular Disorder | Christian Chabbert | LNSC | Saint-Charles |
| NEuronal OPerations in visual TOpographic maps | Frédéric Chavane | INT | Timone |
| Language | Pascale Cole | LPC | Saint-Charles |
| Methods and Computational Anatomy | Olivier Coulon | INT | Timone |
| Neuronal coding and plasticity in epilepsy | Valérie Crépel | INMED | Luminy |
| Live imaging of cell interactions in the normal and diseased brain (IMAPATH) | Franck Debardieux | INT | Timone |
| AdapJust: Adaptations and adjustments to external and internal constraints | Jozina Dee Graaf | ISM | Luminy |
| Neural basis of somatosensory functions | Patrick Delmas | LNC | Saint-Charles |
| Social Cognition across Lifespan and Pathologies | Christine Deruelle | INT | Timone |
| Stem cells and brain repair | Pascale Durbec | IBDM | Luminy |
| Neuronal coding of space and memory | Jérôme Epsztein | INMED | Luminy |
| Comparative cognition | Joël Fagot | LPC | Saint-Charles |
| List of the teams | Team leader(s) | Institute | Campus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Molecular control of mesenchymal cell differentiation | Laurent Fasano | IBDM | Luminy |
| NOSE. Nasal Olfactory Stemness and Epigenesis | François Féron | INP | Timone |
| Genes, Rhythm and Neurophysiopathology | Anne-Marie François-Bellan | INP | Timone |
| Micro-RNA & Social Cognition | Eduardo Gascon Gonzalo | INT | Timone |
| Multisense and Body | Anne Kavounoudias | LNSC | Saint-Charles |
| Cellular interactions, neurodegeneration and neuroplasticity | Lydia Kerkerian-Le Goff | IBDM | Luminy |
| Early activity in the developing brain | Roustem Khazipov | INMED | Luminy |
| BBB and Neuroinflammation | Michel Khrestchatisky | INP | Timone |
| Music, language and writing | Marieke Longcamp | LNC | Saint-Charles |
| Axon plasticity in development and cance | Fanny Mann | IBDM | Luminy |
| Adolescence and developemental vulnerability to neuropsychiatric diseases | Olivier Manzoni, Pascale Chavis | INMED | Luminy |
| Inference in Visual Behaviours | Guillaume Masson | INT | Timone |
| Functional specialisation of distinct sub-populations of nociceptive neurons | Aziz Moqrich | IBDM | Luminy |
| Perinatal Imprintings and Neurodevelopmental Disorders | Françoise Muscatelli-Bossy | INMED | Luminy |
| Cognition and social neuroscience | Isabelle Regner | LPC | Saint-Charles |
| Neural Plasticity and Degeneration | Santiago Rivera | INP | La Timone |
| La Timone | David Robbe, Ingrid Bureau | INMED | Luminy |
| Neurobiology of Mnesic Processes | François Roman | INP | Timone |
| Study of the effects of the microbiota on host behaviour | Julien Royet | IBDM | Luminy |
| Neural bases of spatial cognition | Francesca Sargolini | LNC | Saint-Charles |
| NICE2: Neonatal, Infantile and Childhood Epilepsies and Encephalopathies | Pierre Szepetowski | INMED | Luminy |
| Brain, Obesity and diet imbalance | Jean-Denis Troadec | LNC | Saint-Charles |
| Spinal Cord and Cerebro-Spinal Fluid Interface (SpiCCI) | Nicolas Wanaverebecq | INT | Timone |
NeuroSchool Find out more
Education through research
In addition to traditional training related to the theme of research on behaviour, the teaching team has implemented numerous pedagogical innovations that link research and training.
Courses related to cognition and their neural bases (all levels and specialities)
| Course unit | Level |
|---|---|
| From perception to action | 3rd year of Bachelor |
| Behavioural genetics and epigenetics | 3rd year of Bachelor |
| Physiology of major functions | 3rd year of Bachelor |
| Environment, lifestyle and nervous system | 3rd year of Bachelor |
| Behaviour and cognition | 3rd year of Bachelor |
| Representation of time and space | 3rd year of Bachelor |
| The origins of human language | 3rd year of Bachelor |
| Memory and forgetfulness | 3rd year of Bachelor |
| States of consciousness and their implications | 3rd year of Bachelor |
| Brain and emotions | 3rd year of Bachelor |
| Cognitive neuroscience | 3rd year of Bachelor |
| From genes to behaviour | Master |
| Peripheral and central sensorimotricity | Master |
| Emotion, motivation and their dysfunctions | Master |
| Functional neuroanatomy | Master |
| Learning and memory | Master |
| Mental functions | Master |
| Natural Cognition, Artificial Cognition and Neuroscience computationnelles | Master |
| Attention and preparation | Master |
| Cognitive control and decision making | Master |
| Specialised Integrative Neurosciences | Master |
| Problem-based learning modules: Alzheimer's disease, autism, space, brain-machine interfaces, touch, mood disorders | Master |
| Tutored seminars: Artificial touch in humans: sensations evoked and cortical responses (R. Ackerley) Ticklishness, Ambivalence and Play (M. Brecht) Visceral inputs, brain dynamics and first-person perspective (C. Tallon-Baudry) Cognitive reserve and brain resilience in older adults: related concepts, neural substrates and the role of late-life cognitive stimulation (S. Belleville) | PhD |
| NeuroDays : "How the brain feels the body" "When the brain plays the game" ; Meetings with experts : "What to do with a PhD in "cognition"?" | PhD |
