Charles Ducrot
Team: Mechanisms of Adaptive Processes in brain circuits (MAP)
Post doctoral researcher |
The Adhesive Language of Synapses
Exploring how adhesion molecules shape synaptic architecture
I am a neuroscientist and Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellow at the Interdisciplinary Institute for Neuroscience (IINS, Bordeaux, France). My research focuses on understanding how synapses form, organize, and diversify in the brain. From my doctoral work on Neurexins in Montréal to my current postdoctoral studies on Neuroligins in Bordeaux, I seek to uncover how cell-adhesion molecules control the establishment of synaptic contacts and shape synaptic architecture. During my PhD in the laboratory of Prof. Louis-Éric Trudeau, I investigated the axonal development and connectivity of dopaminergic neurons. By combining transmission and scanning electron microscopy, live-cell imaging, and behavioral approaches, I revealed the dual nature of dopaminergic terminals and demonstrated a critical role of Neurexins in shaping their synaptic organization and their glutamate and GABA co-transmission. Since October 2021, I have been conducting postdoctoral research at IINS, first under the supervision of Dr. Olivier Thoumine and currently in Dr. Mathieu Letellier’s group. Here, I use advanced imaging and molecular approaches, including electron microscopy, novel nanobody-based probes, and a newly generated bAP-Nlgn1 knock-in mouse line, to map the nanoscale organization and function of Neuroligin-1 at both excitatory and inhibitory synapses. My background in synapse formation and exocytosis, combined with expertise in adhesion molecules and multiscale imaging, places me in a unique position to dissect the molecular logic that defines synaptic identity across neural circuits. Supported by competitive fellowships (Marie Skłodowska-Curie, FRM, FRQS, Parkinson Canada), my long-term goal is to establish an independent research program elucidating how adhesion molecules such as Neurexins determine synaptic specificity in the mammalian brain. Publications PubMed – Charles Ducrot