Human non-invasive neurostimulation and neuronavigation

Over the past 30 years, human non-invasive brain stimulation, including transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and electrical stimulation (TES), has made important contributions in many disciplines, ranging from behavioral neuroscience to psycholinguistics. This tool allows us to question the causal relationship between brain structures and cognitive functions in humans. Moreover, thanks to MRI-based neuro-navigation the area targeted by the stimulation can now be localized with a remarkable spatial resolution. In parallel with fundamental research, the clinic has taken up these techniques in the treatment of psychiatric or neurological disorders. However, important technical and interpretative questions remain unanswered, such as the detailed characterization of the electromagnetic field induced by the stimulation in the brain and its consequences on neuronal physiology. A first objective of our workshop is to present to the Aix-Marseille community the principles as well as the recent evolution of non-invasive stimulation techniques, with a critical look at the still ill-defined points and the limits both from the point of view of brain studies and clinical applications. These topics will be addressed during two mornings of presentations from internationally renowned scientists in this field, as well as by a roundtable and remote conference in the afternoon. In addition, "hands-on" workshops on the use of stimulators and neuronavigation equipment will be conducted by expert researchers, as well as by technical staff, during two afternoon sessions. This workshop is meant to be of interest to non-experts of the neurostimulation techniques as well, and students are warmly invited to participate. Registration is free but mandatory. For practical reasons, the number of participants will have to be limited.