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Our activity is structured around three themes that are in line with the scientific and societal challenges presented below:

 Theme 1 - Community responses to natural and anthropogenic disturbances

The effects of multiple pressures such as global change factors (i.e. climate change, modification of plant diversity, modification of land management, biological invasions, presence of pollutants such as nanoparticles, micro(nano)plastics...) on microbial communities and their environment are studied through approaches integrating microbial ecotoxicology and stress ecology. The aim is to determine the consequences of these disturbances on the dynamics, abundance, structure and activity of communities involved in key processes of the nitrogen and carbon cycles, as well as the feedbacks generated.

Theme 2 - Relationships between biodiversity, ecosystem functioning and ecosystem services

We evaluate: i) the contribution of soil microbial communities to the provision of multiple ecosystem services (in particular the maintenance of soil fertility, climate regulation notably via greenhouse gas emissions, water quality, and plant productivity) ii) the synergies and trade-offs between these service, iii) the ability of certain plant and animal communities to direct processes such as nitrification and/or denitrification, and ultimately to modify certain ecosystem services. We also analyze how plant strategies for nitrogen nutrient utilization induce modifications within microbial communities, thus affecting their ecology.

Theme 3 - Ecological engineering

Ecological engineering approaches are developed through the management of the microbial and plant components of ecosystems to enhance their performance and resilience. The goal is to consider this component in the development of nature-based solutions, for example in the context of agroecology, urban development or sustainable forestry.

To achieve these objectives, we use experimental approaches both in the field and under controlled conditions, coupled with modeling approaches. We use both standard and innovative tools to characterize the abundance (quantitative PCR targeting function genes), diversity (metagenomics and high-throughput sequencing targeting genes specific to functional groups), and activity (gas and ion chromatography, colorimetric assays) of nitrifying, denitrifying and nitrogen-fixing groups, as well as the microbial community as a whole. Our team also uses analytical methods to characterize root and aerial traits, as well as the diversity of natural substances in the soil or rhizosphere and the microbial or plant metabolome.