This pivotal gathering of the world’s leading experts in neurology, intensive care and neuroscience will take place on 25–26 June 2026 at the Sainte-Anne Psychiatric and Neuroscience Institute in Paris, France. This year’s pre-programme, themed ‘Brain–Body Interaction: From Physiological Aspects to Clinical Application in the ICU’, promises to stimulate in-depth discussions and provide valuable insights into the evolving landscape of neuroscientific research and clinical practice regarding brain–body interactions in intensive care settings.

Our two-day programme begins on 25 June with a warm welcome and networking coffee session, setting the scene for an enriching exchange of knowledge and ideas. The conference will officially begin with an opening talk by the NICIS scientific and organising committees, followed by an introduction to the theme by Pierre-Marie Lledo from the Pasteur Institute in Paris.

On the first day, sessions will explore the acute response to stress, examining pathophysiology, interoceptive mechanisms, and behavioural consequences. These sessions will be led by renowned experts such as Greet Van den Bergh, Cécile Capron, Athina Demertzi and Cécile Ramdani. The afternoon sessions will focus on analysing brain-heart interactions and developing ICU-specific quantification techniques. This session will feature contributions from Diego Candia-Rivera, Soojin Park and Bertrand Hermann.

The conference will also give you the chance to attend a prestigious lecture by Jean-Remi King, who will talk about the future of brain-computer interactions.

On the second day, the first theme will be brain-lung interactions, covering everything from their anatomical and clinical understanding to their consequences in terms of invasive ventilation. These sessions will be led by renowned speakers such as Thomas Similowski, Thiago Bassi, Louis Blanch and Robert D. Stevens.

The following discussions will focus on brain-gut and brain-kidney interactions. There will be a presentation of recent work on the microbiota, as well as on hepatic and renal encephalopathies with contributions from Mickaël Bobot, Nicolas Weiss and Gabriel Lepousez.

Finally, the last session will focus on a topic that is close to the heart of our congress and underlies many neurological dysfunctions in intensive care: Brain-Inflammation Cross-talk. There will be presentations by Jan Claassen, Isabelle Beuchat and Mervyn Singer, who will talk to us about energetic dysfunction.

NICIS 2026 is not just any conference; it is a beacon for advancing our understanding of, and exploration into, brain-body interactions. It fosters collaboration and drives innovation in the field. We look forward to welcoming you to Paris for what promises to be an unforgettable gathering of minds and discoveries.