Developmental Brain Physiology and Pathology

Our aim is to uncover the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying the development of synapses and brain networks in a physiological condition and in models of neuropsychiatric disorders.

Our aim is to tackle the following questions:

  1. How synaptogenesis proceeds?
  2. How does extracellular matrix shape neuronal signaling?
  3. How pathogenic molecules with psychotomimetic actions (e.g. ketamine, autoantibody directed against NMDA receptor) affect glutamatergic signaling and behaviour)?
  4. How mutations of the NMDA receptor subunit during development affect synaptogenesis and neuronal network?

Techniques

  1. Molecular and cellular neurobiology
  2. Neurodevelopment and neurodevelopmental disorders (GRIN disorders)
  3. Autoimmunity
  4. Extracellular space
  5. Neuro-immunology
  6. Neuropsychiatric disorders
  7. NMDAR open channel blockers

Keywords

  • Single molecule imaging in-vitro and ex-vivo
  • Super-resolution
  • FRET-FLIM
  • Molecular biology
  • Biochemistry
  • Mass spectrometry
  • Electrophysiology
  • Behavioural tests

Selected publications

Examining the effects of extremely low-frequency magnetic fields on cognitive functions and functional brain markers in aged mice.
Senka Hadzibegovic, Olivier Nicole, Vojislav Andelkovic, Florence Poulletier de Gannes, Annabelle Hurtier, Isabelle Lagroye, Bruno Bontempi
Sci Rep. 2025-03-11
10.1038/s41598-025-93230-y

Long-Term Clinical and Biological Prognostic Factors of Anti-NMDA Receptor Encephalitis in Children
Maxime Mazowiecki, Lorraine Flet-Berliac, Julia Roux, Anne Lépine, Pascale Chretien, Salima Hacein-Bey-Abina, Laetitia Giorgi, Frederic Villega, Emmanuel Cheuret, Marie Benaiteau, Veronique Rogemond, Geraldine Picard, Sarah Baer, Pierre Cleuziou, Elodie Lametery, Isabelle Desguerre, Mélodie Aubart, Mathilde Chevignard, Roger Le Grand, Philippe Horellou, Carole Leroy, Bastien Joubert, Jerome Honnorat, Kumaran Deiva
Neurol Neuroimmunol Neuroinflamm. 2025-03-01
10.1212/NXI.0000000000200346

Investigating the Impact of NMDA Receptor Organization and Biological Sex in the APPswe/PS1dE9 Mouse Model of Alzheimer’s Disease
Senka Hadzibegovic, Bruno Bontempi, Olivier Nicole
IJMS. 2025-02-18
10.3390/ijms26041737

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and health professionals’ awareness of the syndrome: A comparison of practitioners’ knowledge in two french regions
S. Daoudi, M. Spodenkiewicz, S. Robin, M. Rébola, P. Castera, Peter Von Theobald, M. Husson, B. Doray, F. Villéga
Archives de Pédiatrie. 2025-02-01
10.1016/j.arcped.2024.11.008

Behavioral, neurodevelopmental profile, and epilepsy trajectory in two series of SLC6A1-NDD: a retrospective study with comprehensive assessment, and a participatory database study
Sarah Baer, Mathieu Rebert, Pauline Burger, Jean-Louis Mandel, Nathalie Villeneuve, Marc Gibaud, Cecilia Altuzarra, Frédéric Villega, Claude Cances, Laure Lacan, Sylvie Nguyen, Gaëtan Lesca, Hervé Isnard, Nouha Allani-Essid, Vincent Laugel, Romain Coutelle, Anne de Saint Martin
European Journal of Paediatric Neurology. 2025-01-01
10.1016/j.ejpn.2025.01.003

Diverse anti-NMDAR autoantibodies from individuals with encephalitis
Zoe Jamet, Frederic Villega, Laurent Groc
Nat Struct Mol Biol. 2024-11-27
10.1038/s41594-024-01435-y

Ketamine alleviates NMDA receptor hypofunction through synaptic trapping
Frédéric Villéga, Alexandra Fernandes, Julie Jézéquel, Floriane Uyttersprot, Nathan Benac, Sarra Zenagui, Laurine Bastardo, Hélène Gréa, Delphine Bouchet, Léa Villetelle, Olivier Nicole, Véronique Rogemond, Jérôme Honnorat, Julien P. Dupuis, Laurent Groc
Neuron. 2024-10-01
10.1016/j.neuron.2024.06.028

Synaptic rearrangement of NMDA receptors controls memory engram formation and malleability in the cortex
Benjamin Bessières, Julien Dupuis, Laurent Groc, Bruno Bontempi, Olivier Nicole
Sci. Adv.. 2024-08-30
10.1126/sciadv.ado1148

APP fragment controls both ionotropic and non-ionotropic signaling of NMDA receptors
Jade Dunot, Sebastien Moreno, Carine Gandin, Paula A. Pousinha, Mascia Amici, Julien Dupuis, Margarita Anisimova, Alex Winschel, Magalie Uriot, Samuel J. Petshow, Maria Mensch, Ingrid Bethus, Camilla Giudici, Heike Hampel, Benedikt Wefers, Wolfgang Wurst, Ronald Naumann, Michael C. Ashby, Bodo Laube, Karen Zito, Jack R. Mellor, Laurent Groc, Michael Willem, Hélène Marie
Neuron. 2024-06-01
10.1016/j.neuron.2024.05.027

NMDA receptor autoantibodies primarily impair the extrasynaptic compartment
Zoe Jamet, Camille Mergaux, Morgane Meras, Delphine Bouchet, Frédéric Villega, Jakob Kreye, Harald Prüss, Laurent Groc
Brain. 2024-05-17
10.1093/BRAIN/AWAE163

Converging synaptic and network dysfunctions in distinct autoimmune encephalitis
Daniel Hunter, Mar Petit-Pedrol, Dominique Fernandes, Nathan Bénac, Catarina Rodrigues, Jakob Kreye, Mihai Ceanga, Harald Prüss, Christian Geis, Laurent Groc
EMBO Rep. 2024-01-22
10.1038/s44319-024-00056-2

Phosphatidylserine enriched with polyunsaturated n‐3 fatty acid supplementation for Attention‐Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in children & adolescents with epilepsy: a randomized placebo‐controlled trial
Sylvain Rheims, Vania Herbillon, Ségolène Gaillard, Catherine Mercier, Nathalie Villeuve, Frédéric Villéga, Claude Cances, Pierre Castelnau, Silvia Napuri, Anne de Saint‐Martin, Stéphane Auvin, Sylvie N. Guyen The Tich, Patrick Berquin, Julitta de Bellecize, Mathieu Milh, Pascal Roy, Alexis Arzimanoglou, Jacques Bodennec, Laurent Bezin, Behrouz Kassai,
Epilepsia Open. 2024-01-03
10.1002/epi4.12892

Non-canonical interplay between glutamatergic NMDA and dopamine receptors shapes synaptogenesis
Nathan Bénac, G. Ezequiel Saraceno, Corey Butler, Nahoko Kuga, Yuya Nishimura, Taiki Yokoi, Ping Su, Takuya Sasaki, Mar Petit-Pedrol, Rémi Galland, Vincent Studer, Fang Liu, Yuji Ikegaya, Jean-Baptiste Sibarita, Laurent Groc
Nat Commun. 2024-01-02
10.1038/s41467-023-44301-z