Luc Estebanez

🚨 New preprint + thread 🧵
We've gone back to studying motoneuron control principles and their applications & here's paper #1:

A proof-of-concept study showing that people with tetraplegic spinal cord injury can control up to 2DoF from a single intramuscular implant

www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1...

Never thought I’d see the day when LinkedIn is the biggest driver of engagement in our papers, but we live in some strange times.

6/6 This is all thanks to the incredibly talented and passionate Anton Dogadov, who carried this whole study!

Thanks for feedback on our first version of the paper from @gbouvier.bsky.social vier.bsky.social‬ at @neuropsi.bsky.social, Jean-François Léger @ibensens.bsky.social and many others!

5/6 During cortical wave generation, the response to the movement was reshaped, and lost its relation to limb amplitude, likely being processed to match the task instead.

4/6 Importantly, limb movements were likely required to trigger rewardable waves, but were only successful when the cortex was in the specific, suppressed state.

3/6 We have now gone much further, and show that learning this task triggers a reshaping of the cortical dynamics, including a strong suppression of activity before rewardable wave.

2/6 One year ago, we showed that mice can learn to guide mesoscale cortical of the somatosensory cortex from a start to a target area to obtain rewards.

1/6 We have a new/updated preprint out, led by Anton Dogadov, demonstrating operant conditioning of large cortical waves over mouse S1 thanks to a mesoscale GCamp6 brain-machine interface!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Global and local nature of cortical slow waves Explaining the macroscopic activity of a neuronal population from its microscopic properties poses a great challenge, not just because of the many local agents that play a role, but due to the impact ...

I'm excited to share my latest publication! 🚨
Global and local nature of cortical slow waves:
www.cell.com/iscience/ful...

In brief, we explored in silico how cortical slow waves are shaped by both external inputs and intrinsic properties of neuronal populations.

(1/8)
Excited to share our new paper in @cp-cellreports.bsky.social , led by grad student @rohitrangwani.bsky.social ! 🧠🤖
We show that robust #BrainMachineInterface (#BMI) control is possible using #cerebellar activity- even in a #stroke-affected brain.
#Neuroscience
www.cell.com/cell-reports...

Octopuses fall for the “rubber arm” illusion, just like us.

Learn more: scim.ag/40xyT4y

Two voltage imaging studies in two days using ASAP fluorescent indicators.

First, visualizing electrical brain waves with ASAP3, in Cell. Free link below. Though recorded by EEG for 100 years, how brain waves arise from different neuron types has been unclear.

authors.elsevier.com/sd/article/S...

Don't miss this upcoming informal gathering on the theme of SEARCHING FOR PRINCIPLES IN MOTOR CONTROL on Sept 23-24, 25 in Sorbonne University. It will enable you to present your work to the French motor community. Registration is free! motorconference.sciencesconf.org

If you have missed it, wonderful workshop in Montpellier on most recent optical imaging techniques for neurosciences. One week left to register lnkd.in/etEmGyMm
Visit workshop 284
Free registration, accomodation possible on site.

OpenExo: An open-source modular exoskeleton to augment human function We present an open-source, open-hardware exoskeleton to aid in accelerating the growth of robotic exoskeleton research.

Scientists have developed OpenExo, an open source exoskeleton framework that could make wearable robotics more accessible and accelerate the development of new devices.

Read more in #ScienceRobotics: scim.ag/4koYIKY

Les souris ont aussi une représentation cognitive riche de leur corps L’illusion de la « main en caoutchouc » montre que la manipulation astucieuse de perceptions visuelles et tactiles peut nous convaincre en quel

Les souris ont-elles aussi une représentation cognitive de leur corps ?

🤝 @cnrs-paris-saclay.bsky.social @univparissaclay.bsky.social @lucestebanez.bsky.social @touchmovelab.bsky.social @neuropsi.bsky.social

👉 Lire l'article dans @plosbiology.org
buff.ly/2JK2msI

Dynamics of sensorimotor plasticity during exoskeletal finger augmentation How does the brain integrate artificial body extensions into its somatosensory representation? While prior work has shown that tool use alters body representation, little is known about how artificial...

How does the brain integrate artificial body extensions? Using a custom-built finger-extending exoskeleton, we show that wearable augmentations are quickly integrated into body representation, with proprioceptive space adapting to the device’s structure and function.

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Le projet Neurocontrol : où les neurosciences rencontrent l’automatique – MITI Retrouver l'interview des porteurs du projet Neurocontrol, fruit d’une collaboration entre neuroscientifiques et automaticiens

🎉 L'interdisciplinarité est à l'oeuvre dans notre institut.

🤝 Nos liens forts avec la communauté des ingénieurs du L2S @centralesupelec.bsky.social nous valent le label PRIME de @cnrs.fr !

🔬🐁 We have a new position open!

➡️ Our "Chaire Professeur Junior" position focuses on multi-omics during brain development. This research-heavy position follows a tenure-track scheme, leading to a full professor position.

🗓️ Application deadline: 22/08/2025

Notre chère collègue et amie, Heather McLean, nous a quittés le 16 juin 2025, après s’être battue comme une lionne, avec beaucoup de courage et de détermination, contre le cancer. Canadienne de naissance, elle est arrivée en France en 1992 pour effectuer un postdoctorat dans le laboratoire de Jean Champagnat à Gif-sur-Yvette, où elle a étudié les réseaux de neurones impliqués dans les rythmes respiratoires. Après un second postdoctorat dans l’équipe de Yehezkel Ben-Ari en 1998, elle a été recrutée comme maître de conférences dans notre université. Elle y a enseigné la physiologie et les neurosciences avec passion, dynamisme et bonne humeur. Elle s’est également beaucoup investie dans la formation des professeurs des écoles en étant tout d’abord responsable d’un parcours dédié au sein de la Licence Sciences de la Vie, puis responsable de la Licence Sciences, Enseignement, Médiation. Heather McLean a contribué en première ligne à l'internationalisation des formations de l’Université Paris-Saclay, en tant que coordinatrice Erasmus+ pour le service des relations internationales, ainsi qu’en tant que directrice adjointe déléguée aux relations internationales de la graduate school Life Sciences and Health.   Parallèlement, Heather a mené des recherches sur les récepteurs métabotropiques au glutamate et à l’adénosine dans le cortex cérébelleux, dans l’équipe d’Hervé Daniel. En 2020, elle a rejoint l’équipe de Valérie Doyère où elle a développé une thématique centrée sur l’étude des effets de la manipulation des circuits neuronaux sur l’apparition d'états anxieux et de peurs à l’adolescence. Son HDR, intitulée From Synapses to Cognition, reflète bien son parcours : un véritable voyage au cœur du cerveau et au sein de NeuroPSI.   Heather McLean était très appréciée de ses collègues et des étudiant·e·s envers qui elle se montrait toujours à l’écoute et bienveillante. Sa bonne humeur, son esprit collaboratif et sa curiosité nous manqueront à toutes et à tous, énormément.

C'est notre grande tristesse d'annoncer le décès de Heather McLean, Maitresse de Conférence en neuroscience à @univparissaclay.bsky.social, chercheuse à @neuropsi.bsky.social.

I am extremely grateful and beyond happy to share that I have been awarded an @inserm.fr #ATIP-Avenir fellowship to start my own lab to study neuronal circuits for auditory categorization! Thanks to everyone who made this possible.

Inferring internal states across mice and monkeys using facial features - Nature Communications Here, the authors created a virtual reality task for monkeys and mice to explore if internal states like attention are similar across species. Their facial expressions during the task were similar, su...

Now out in @natcomms.nature.com‬: Mice and monkeys spontaneously shift through comparable cognitive states - and it's written all over their faces! (1/7)
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Two postdoc positions in the lab within the ERC Synergy project "Chronology" in collaboration with S. Ostojic, M. Jazayeri and V. van Wassenhove @virginievanw.bsky.social . Two focuses: sound sequences representations across the brain & novel all-optical technology. Contact: brice.bathellier@cnrs.fr

Preventing gender disparities in mathematics is a worldwide preoccupation1,2. In infancy and early childhood, boys and girls exhibit similar core knowledge of number and space3,4,5,6,7,8. Gender disparities in maths are, therefore, thought to primarily reflect an internalization of the sociocultural stereotype that ‘girls are bad at maths’. However, where, when and how widely this stereotype becomes entrenched remains uncertain. Here, we report the results of a 4-year longitudinal assessment of language and mathematical performance of all French first and second graders (2,653,082 children). Boys and girls exhibited very similar maths scores upon school entry, but a gender gap in favour of boys became highly significant after 4 months of schooling and reached an effect size of about 0.20 after 1 year. These findings were repeated each year and varied only slightly across family, class or school type and socio-economic level. Although schooling correlated with age, exploiting the near-orthogonal variations indicated that the gender gap increased with schooling rather than with age. These findings point to the first year of school as the time and place where a maths gender gap emerges in favour of boys, thus helping focus the search for solutions and interventions.

Ecart de genre en maths à T1 (début CP), T2 (janvier CP) et T3 (début CE1) en fonction de l'âge des enfants en mois lors de la passation du test, pour les quatre années de cohorte (d de Cohen). Étant donné que l'entrée à l'école est strictement déterminée par la date de naissance, les enfants du même âge peuvent différer dans leur durée de scolarisation (couleurs et lignes de régression). Quel que soit l'âge auquel ils ont passé le test, les enfants présentaient un écart minime ou nul entre les sexes en mathématiques à T1, mais l'effet s'est accentué après 4 mois (T2) et 12 mois (T3) de scolarisation.

Du poids indéniable de l'école dans la production des inégalités genrées face aux mathématiques

"Rapid emergence of a maths gender gap in first grade"
par P. Martinot et al.

Une étude sur 3 million d'enfants en France (!!!) qui va faire du bruit

#LaRAC @nature.com
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Scientists trick mice with human experiment with 'unparalleled' value "This opens up many opportunities."

🐀💪More coverage of our latest mouse limb embodiment work @plosbiology.org in @newsweek.com !

The rubber-hand illusion was translated to the mouse model. Just like in humans, embodiment in mice can be achieved by brushing the real forelimb of the mouse and the artificial limb (yellow) in synchrony to generate matching visual and touch percepts. This study suggests that as the mouse looks at the artificial limb, it perceives it as its own limb, and feels threatened if the artificial limb is threatened. Image credit: Luc Estebanez.

The "rubber hand illusion" in mice... @lucestebanez.bsky.social &co use automated videography to show that mice display quantifiable behavioral markers of the embodiment of an #ArtificialLimb, opening the door to future research into human #BodyOwnership disorders @plosbiology.org 🧪 plos.io/4jHsESn

'Rubber paw illusion': Mice can 'sense' artificial limbs, just as humans do Scientists have introduced a new laboratory model that could help them study how artificial limbs can be better designed.

About our latest study, with comments by @plasticity-lab.bsky.social Tamar Makin inside!

🔽🔽🔽🔽
www.livescience.com/health/neuro...

thank you Rémi!

🎉 Congratulations to Zineb Hayatou and all members of our team @touchmovelab.bsky.social at @neuropsi.bsky.social @cnrsbiologie.bsky.social @univparissaclay.bsky.social!

👍 Many thanks to collaborators Hongkai Wang (Dalian U. Technology, China) and Antoine Chaillet @centralesupelec.bsky.social.

We tweeted the details of this story a while ago when the BioRxiv came out: