EDUCATION

- PhD in microbiology (1983)
- Integration at CNRS as a Researcher (1984)
- Promotion to the grade : « Chargé de Recherche 1ère classe » (1988)
- Promotion to the grade : « Directeur de Recherche de 2ème classe » (1993)
- Promotion to the grade : « Directeur de Recherche de 1ère classe » (2005)

RESEARCH INTERESTS

I began my research activity (PhD, post-doc) with the study of Frankia, an actinobacteria that is able to fix nitrogen in symbiotic association with actinorhizal plants. I have then developed my own research group to investigate the evolution potential of bacteria in environments such as the soil and the plants. For more than 15 years the research group entitled « Gene Transfer and Bacterial Adaptation » that I led at the Lyon University has had the general objectives of determining the involvement of horizontal gene transfers (HGT) in the adaptation and evolution of bacteria to new environments. Our studies focused mainly on natural genetic transformation and also, but at a lesser extent, on conjugation. These objectives lead us to develop soil DNA extraction methods and we were among the first to investigate environmental bacteria with metagenomic approaches. Several of our studies were devoted to investigate the fate of DNA released by genetically engineered organisms including the possibility that recombinant DNA transforms indigenous bacteria. We also demonstrated a potential transforming effect on soil bacteria of lightning-generated electrical conditions that in part motivated our move to the “Laboratoire Ampère” (UMR CNRS 5005) at Ecole Centrale de Lyon (ECL) and the creation of the “Environmental Microbial Genomics” group.

PUBLICATIONS (for a complete list of publications click here)

RESPONSABILITIES

• Co-founder and President of the Scientific Committee of LibraGen (private company).

• Member of the French Genetic Engineering Commission (CGG).
• Member of the Biotechnology Committee at the French Food Security Commission (AFSSA).
• Member of the National Ecotoxicology Commission (PNETOX).
• Member of an INRA evaluation commission (CSS-STEA)  

• Editor: Research in Microbiology
  
  
• Member of the Editorial board : Applied and Environmental Microbiology, Annals of Microbiology, The ISME Journal.
  
  
• President of the Organizing committee of the 8th Symposium on Bacterial Genetics and Ecology. BAGECO-08. June 26-29 2005, Lyon.

MORE...