Microbial Ecology

It was during her Bachelor's degree in Molecular and Cellular Biology at the University of Pau and the Adour Region that Alexandra developed an interest in environmental microbiology. This led her to choose this minor for her Master's degree in Fundamental and Applied Microbiology at the University of Rennes. During these years, she became even more interested in scientific research and decided to join the Lazar laboratory to carry out her doctoral project on the assembly and stability of sessile microbial communities in aquifer habitats.

 

This project will cover three themes. The first is the impact of the characteristics of the aquifer rocks on their microbial colonization and the impact of the activities of these communities on the surface of these rocks. The second objective is to investigate the existence of constant exchanges between planktonic communities (free-living in the environment) and sessile communities (attached to rocks), and the influence of abiotic factors on these exchanges. Finally, the third objective is to investigate the existence of a stable, long-term surface community on the rocks and its potential resilience to various environmental disturbances.