Research teams

Bacillus, Environment and Health 
Team leader : Raphaël ROUSSET

The team is interested in the defense mechanisms of organisms against environmental aggressors and the pathophysiological consequences when these mechanisms fail. With a focus on host-pathogen interactions, we study the physiology of the intestine and the functions of intestinal stem cells in maintaining cellular homeostasis and innate immunity. Our biological models are Drosophila melanogaster and bacteria of the Bacillus cereus group, with a particular interest in Bacillus thuringiensis, which is used as a microbial insecticide in agriculture.

Jade FINKELSTEIN
Armel GALLET
Claire GUILLEBON
 

Biology of Introduced Populations
Team leader : Elodie VERCKEN

The lab studies the conditions for the installation and the evolution of introduced populations of insects. Our biological models are invasive pests and species used in biological control. Our research on introductions, subsequent demographic and geographic expansions, and the associated evolutive phenomena, is based on ecology and evolutionary biology. We combine behavioural ecology, population genetics and population dynamics.

Alexandra AUGUSTE
Aurélie BLIN
Didier CROCHARD
Emeline DELEURY

Developmental timing, Environment and Behaviors
Team leader : Nuria ROMERO

Our interest focuses on understanding how does the environment interact with the genes to times the Juvenile-to-adult DevelopmentalTransition (JDT) and its associated behaviors. The JDT (Metamorphosis/ puberty) determines the reproductive ability for a given species. Therefore, uncovering the mechanism timing this developmental transition is essential to improve pest management efficiency but also, in the case of human, to battle against adverse health consequences caused by earlier puberty.

Raphaël BONCHE

EQA

The support team provides outreach service to the research teams and technical units of the ISA unit. Made up of 14 people and placed under the responsibility of the administrator.

Stephen AMBROGIO
Catherine AUGUET-CHADAJ
Séverine BEURTEY
Nathalie BOSSELUT-BENOIT

GAME

The GAME team studies mechanisms of genomic plasticity related to: 1 - species evolution towards a parasitic or pathogenic life style and 2 - adaptation of these same species to current environmental changes, including to methods deployed to manage them.Scientists in GAME use bioinformatics, biostatistics and artificial intelligence for their research.

Marc BAILLY-BECHET
Carole BELLIARDO
Dominique COLINET

IPIE

Plant-Insect-Environment Interactions
Team leader : Gaëlle LE GOFF

The management of insect pests, from phytophagous and parasites to disease vectors requires a thorough knowledge of the mechanisms by which insects deal with chemical and biological challenges. These challenges to insect fitness can be viewed as a seamless range of aggressions, rather than categories of "pathogens" or "xenobiotics". The overall goal of our team is to exploit genomic resources to study the functional basis of insect defense mechanisms and their evolution.

Christine COUSTAU
Janice DE ALMEIDA-ENGLER
Ariane FAZARI
Thierry FRICAUX

IPN

The overall objective of the team, through various levels of study ranging from the gene to the field, is to acquire the scientific basis for a better understanding of the interaction between the plant and the nematode in order to envisage new specific, sustainable and environmentally friendly control methods. The research developed concerns the two partners in the interaction, i.e. the plant, with the study of the development of the disease (susceptibility) or the establishment of resistance, and the parasite, with the analysis of the pathogenicity and its capacity to evolve.

Pierre ABAD
Claire CARAVEL
Philippe CASTAGNONE
Caroline DJIAN-CAPORALINO
Bruno FAVERY
Pauline FOUBERT

IPO

The team is currently studying mechanisms underlying interactions between plants and microbes in order to contribute to alternative pest control strategies. Our research programs, mainly conducted on plante-oomycete* interactions, aim at identifying molecular processes that orchestrate, on the pathogen side, the onset and the development of infection and the associated evolutive processes. We also aim at deciphering plant responses, leading to the success (sensitivity) or the failure (resistance) of the infection. We combine plant pathology, cell biology, evolutionary and functional genomics, biochemistry and molecular biology.

Valerie ALLASIA
Agnès ATTARD
Aurélien BOISSON DERNIER
Alexandre BRUNET
Catherine ETIENNE
Eric GALIANA

Multitrophic Interactions and Biocontrol 
Team leader : Nicolas DESNEUX and Jean-Luc GATTI

The Mutitrophic Interaction and Biocontrol (MIB) team generates basic and applied knowledge on the ecology and physiology of insect pests, of their biocontrol agents (BCA) and the effect of their hosted symbionts on the BCA success, as well as the impact of biocontrol methods and of the biotic and abiotic conditions on pest-BCA interactions. To achieve this, the team uses a variety of approaches, from the population scale (field, microcosm) to the implementation of experimental evolution in the laboratory, combined with multiomics, molecular and cell biology, toxicology, behavioural analysis and other approaches. Our aim is to understand the fundamental mechanisms at the different levels of interaction in order to optimize and increase the sustainability of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) programs. The goal is to develop innovative and sustainable multilevel biocontrol approaches that will serve as the basis for tomorrow's agroecology.

Komla-Exonam AMEGAN
Marcel AMICHOT
Laury ARTHAUD
Philippe BEAREZ
Goodluck BENJAMIN
Dominique CAZES

Nicolas DESNEUX
Isabelle DEYDIER
Jean-Luc GATTI
Anne-Violette LAVOIR
Severine LEMAUF

M2P2

The team aims at making plant protection more respectful of the environment through the development of innovative ecological pest management strategies. For that purpose, the team develops an interdisciplinary research program based on the concerted use of theoretical models and experiments to address specific issues from the individual to populations and agroecosystems.

Valentina BALDAZZI
Cécile BRESCH-BARRAYA
Vincent CALCAGNO
Mélina COINTE

RDLB

Biological Control Research and Development 
Team leader : Nicolas BOROWIEC and Thibaut MALAUSA

The main objective of the team "Research and Development in Biological Control" is the field implementation of biological control strategies against noxious phytophagous insects using entomophagous insects (parasitoids or predators).

Nicolas BOROWIEC
Alexandre BOUT
Quentin BOUVARD
Inessa BUCH
Xavier FAUVERGUE
Elodie GARNIER

Mélanie HUGUET
Thibaut MALAUSA
Nicolas RIS
Madalina VICIRIUC
Sylvie WAROT
Gabriel ZIZZO

IRL

Rhizobia-Legume Interactions
Team leader : Alexandre BOSCARI

The team focuses on improving our knowledge of plant/nitrogen-fixing bacteria (Rhizobium) by studying the role of the cellular redox state during the symbiotic interaction.

Geneviève ALLOING
Goodluck BENJAMIN
Eric BONCOMPAGNI
Alexandre BOSCARI
Marc BOSSENO
Renaud BROUQUISSE

Systems Biology for Plants Health 
Team leader: Silvia BOTTINI 

The team SMILE is focused on studying the mechanisms of molecular reprogramming in plants upon interaction with biotic agents by using systems biology models from artificial intelligence to network inference. To address this question, since the plant defense mechanisms activated by biotic stressors involve different molecular responses, in the team we develop multi-omics integration approaches to deepen our understanding of those complex signaling networks.

Sylvia BOTTINI  

Giulia CALIA 

Justine LABORY 
Maxime MULTARI