An article by Jean-Philippe LACHAUX (EDUWELL CRNL) published in the journal Cerveau & Psycho on 12 February, 2021 section L'école des cerveaux.

Manon DIRHEIMER, Designated Veterinarian, was recruited by Inserm in 2017. She is in charge of several animal facilities, today those of the CRNL but also those of the SBRI, the P4 and the PBES. She works with many species: fish, mice, rats, rabbits, hamsters, guinea pigs, ferrets, cats and monkeys. And helps you on a daily basis. Discover the career path of this passionate woman!

An article of Maëllie Midroit* and Laura Chalençon* under the direction of Nathalie Mandairon, NEUROPOP CRNL, in Current Biology.

Why are we so attracted to some odorants? A study published in the journal Current Biology shows that pleasant odorants can act as rewards on our brains. This specific property of odorants seems to be due to a special connection between two brain regions, the olfactory bulb, which deals with odor pleasantness, and the olfactory tubercle, a key structure of the reward system. The activation of this network allows dopamine release, as do natural beneficial stimuli such as food or artificial stimuli such as drugs. These results obtained in mice have been confirmed in humans, showing that this process is conserved between species.

© Nathalie Mandairon & Marc Thevenet

"We only use 10% of our brain's capacities", "To each his own learning style", "Everything is decided before the age of 3"... We think we know a lot about how our brain works. What if these preconceived ideas don't make sense?

Cortex mag, February 9, 2021, Benoit de la Fonchais, Clara Saleri (IMPACT CRNL) et Yves Rossetti (TRAJECTOIRE CRNL)

Body size exaggeration is common in the animal kingdom, with many species having evolved adaptations to look or sound BIG in order to threaten competitors or attract mates. But to what extent does such deception actually fool listeners?
To answer this age-old question, researchers Kasia Pisanski and David Reby (ENES CRNL) examined the perception of deceptive vocal signals of body size in humans. “By studying deception in our own species”, explains Prof. Reby, “we can answer many important questions about deceptive signalling that are difficult to tackle in studies with non-human animals”.

While a large proportion of people suffering from Covid-19 have problems with their sense of smell, neuroscientist Camille Ferdenzi (NEUROPOP CRNL) explains in this podcast the various ways in which the virus can alter this sense, but also how it can be regained through olfactory rehabilitation.

This article by Kate Schipper and Dezso Nemeth (MEMO CRNL) has just been accepted for publication in Leonardo Music Journal, "a journal devoted to the aesthetic and technical issues of contemporary music and sound arts".