A graduate in medicine and researcher in neurosciences, the young woman received the prestigious L’Oréal-Unesco Grant to continue her research on the subthalamic nucleus. The result of her work should provide a better understanding of certain neurodegenerative diseases.

Emmanuelle Wilhelm works with patients suffering from Parkinson's disease who have undergone a neurosurgical procedure to implant a brain pacemaker into the subthalamic nucleus.
The research project aims to study the role of the subthalamic nucleus in the mechanisms of motor inhibition at work when settling on and initiating an action. In this fundamental research project she is studying mechanisms that exist in all human beings and are essential for completing the correct behaviours designed for a specific goal. She hopes to develop new treatments for Parkinson's and other diseases that affect motor skills.
This award will enable her to begin her research and reach a larger population than the scientific community.

"The slightest movement results from intense information exchanges in our brain. Some of this information is designed to begin a motor action or sustain it. Others act like brakes. Through this fundamental research Emmanuelle Wilhelm wants to gain a better understanding of certain basic mechanisms in the brain that are the basis for the preparation of an action", stated the L’Oréal Foundation in a press release.

UNESCO and the L’Oréal Foundation launched a pioneering programme to promote women in science. The L’Oréal-UNESCO International grants were created in 2000, and are awarded annually to 15 talented young, female researchers, PhD or post-doctoral students, to encourage international scientific cooperation and the development of intercultural networks.

Two other researchers also received awards, Aurélie De Groote (ULB), a graduate in biochemistry and molecular and cellular biology and Mieke Metzemaekers (KU Leuven), a researcher at the Rega Institute.

The Belgian grants of 60,000 euros have been awarded every two years since 2007, under the auspices of the Fonds pour la Recherche Scientifique (FRS–FNRS) and the Fonds voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (FWO) (Funds for Scientific Research). Eighteen Belgians have recognised since the creation of the award's Belgian programme.