Alegre-Cortés, PhD

Have you ever wondered why neural systems are spontaneously active? Or how can we use it to understand how circuits communicate?

I’m Javier Alegre Cortés, a postdoctoral researcher at the Neural circuits and brain dynamics laboratory led by Dr. Nikolas Karalis at the Paris Brain Institute.

In my research, I combine the analysis of electrophysiological data, ranging from intracellular to spiking neuronal populations, with computational models of the same circuits. My principal scientific interest is to understand the dynamics and functional constraints of cortical and subcortical circuits. In the seek to answer this question, I analyze and model behavioraly driven and spontaneous activity to uncover how brain areas communicate.

Before working on this project, I obtained my PhD in Bioengineering, exploring how interval time was integrated in the dynamics of neuronal populations in the deep layers of the visual cortex. To do so, I performed experiments using multielectrode arrays and studied the temporal patterns of the visual response, depending on the used interval, using nonlinear Time-Frequency tools.

During my first postdoc in the laboratory of Dr. Ramón Reig, I studied the different circuits in the mouse dorsal striatum, and how they integrated cortical Slow Waves. To do so I combined the analysis of extra- and intracelullar recordings with conductance-based computational models.

You can find a summary of my main projects as well as some secondary projects in the Research section. I have collected some non-scientific texts here. I write mostly about science and philosophy of science to clarify my thoughts, as well as for the pure joy of writing.

See my list of publications here.

Check also my Github, Twitter, and Bluesky profiles.