The goal of the lab is understanding how early alterations of the cerebellum are related to diverse neurodevelopmental disorders. The questions we pursue are grounded in determine, from a developmental perspective, how cerebellar abnormalities impact on the brain function.

We combine mouse genetics to develop animal models with cerebellar alterations, state-of-the-art histological, cellular, molecular biology methods and techniques, transcriptomics and functional analyses.

Our ultimate goal is to understand the contribution of the cerebellum to cognition in both typical development and developmental disorders and to translate this knowledge into clinical applications.

Our research is focused in two main research lines:

-Understanding cerebellar long-range connectivity that relays cerebellar output to diverse brain areas. We aim to elucidate how the cerebellum influences the development and function of remote brain circuits, with particular interest on the cerebellar modulation of the developing cortical circuits.

-Investigating the development and assembly of local cerebellar circuits. We seek to determine basic regulatory mechanisms underlying the formation and function of these circuit and how alterations in these processes derive in an abnormal function of the cerebellum.


Representative Publications

Kaur N* , Han W*, Li Z*, Madrigal MP, Shim S, Pochareddy S, Gulden FO, Li M, Xu X, Xing X, Takeo Y, Li Z, Lu K, Imamura Kawasawa Y, Ballester-Lurbe B, Moreno-Bravo JA, Chédotal A, Terrado J, Pérez-Roger I, Koleske AJ, Sestan N. " Neural Stem Cells Direct Axon Guidance via Their Radial Fiber Scaffold. " Neuron . 23;107(6) , 1197 - 1211 doi: 10.1016/j.neuron.2020.06.035. ( 2020 ) *Equal contribution

Brignani S* , Raj DA*, Schmidt ER, Düdükcü Ö, Adolfs Y, De Ruiter A, Rybiczka-Tesulov M, Verhagen M, van der Meer C, Broekhoven M, Moreno-Bravo JA, Grossouw L, Dumontier E, Cloutier JF, Chédotal A, Pasterkamp RJ. " Remotely Produced and Axon-Derived Netrin-1 Instructs GABAergic Neuron Migration and Dopaminergic Substantia Nigra Development. " Neuron . 07 , 684-702.e9. - doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2020.05.037 ( 2020 ) *Equal contribution

Moreno-Bravo JA* , Roig Puiggros S*, Mehlen P, Chédotal A " Synergistic Activity of Floor-Plate- and Ventricular-Zone-Derived Netrin-1 in Spinal Cord Commissural Axon Guidance. " Neuron . 101 , 625 - 634.e3doi: 10.1016/j.neuron.2018.12.024 ( 2019 ) *Equal contribution. **Comment in Nature Review Neuroscience

Moreno-Bravo JA* , Roig Puiggros S*, Blockus H, Dominici C, Zelina P, Mehlen P, Chédotal A. " Commissural neurons transgress the CNS/PNS boundary in absence of ventricular zone-derived netrin 1. " Development . 17 , 145(2) - doi: 10.1242/dev.159400 ( 2018 ) *Equal contribution

Dominici C* , Moreno-Bravo JA*, Puiggros SR, Rappeneau Q, Rama N, Vieugue P, Bernet A, Mehlen P, Chédotal A " Floor-plate-derived netrin-1 is dispensable for commissural axon guidance. " Nature . 18;545 , 350 - 354-doi: 10.1038/nature22331 ( 2017 ) *Equal contribution. Highlighted in F1000Prime. Preview in Neuron.