Pierre Berthet

Academic interests

I am mostly interested in the dynamics of networks and the impact of synaptic and structural changes on the system activity. I plan to use computational models to investigate processes and mechanisms at play in mental disorders and neurological impairments.

Current project

I simulate biophysically detailed neuron model in order to determine how to best configure and arrange surface (sitting on top of the cortex) electrodes to obtain the more specific and controlled activation of the underlying neurons and networks. 

Background

I previously worked on reinforcement learning in the brain, more specifically in a group of nuclei called basal ganglia, which are important in action selection.

This network relies critically on the dopaminergic neurons to update the connections between nuclei during learning. I used computational model to simulate these various populations and the synaptic changes that would make the model adapt to its inputs and obtained rewards. I then focused on simulating a dopaminergic neuron depletion that is a hallmark of Parkinson's disease. Our results showed a dysfunctional pathway within the basal ganglia, where learning would basically be ineffective, thus causing inappropriate contribution from this pathway to the global action selection mechanism. 

I got my Ph.D. from Stockholm University in 2016, my supervisor was Prof. Anders Lansner. I was lucky to be part of a Marie Sklodowska Curie initial training network during that time.