Origins of imbalance

In this embryonic scene by Claire Wyart, the first brain structures are outlined in yellow, red and violet, luminous markers of neuronal identity.
Each dot reveals a neuron in the process of differentiation, positioned with remarkable spatio-temporal precision.

But in certain forms of epilepsy of genetic origin, this mapping becomes disrupted from the earliest hours of development: neurons appear in the wrong place, migrate incorrectly, or integrate into abnormal circuits.

These silent, invisible but fundamental errors pave the way for future crises.

By visualizing these patterns of expression with such finesse, the researchers are going back to the embryonic origins of the disease... to better understand, and perhaps prevent, this neuronal imbalance before it becomes pathological.

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