Genetic and genomic investigations on Chlamydomonas reinhardtii have provided unique information on chloroplast function and biogenesis, which proved applicable to the green lineage and beyond. We are now expanding our research to include Diatoms. Our research lines include:
– The generation, maintenance and distribution of mutant collections, either of Chlamydomonas (ChlamyStation) or of Phaeodactylum tricornutum.
– The development and application of genome editing tools in these two model organisms.
– The development of a model Diatom system for the genetic study of photosynthesis. This will include protocols for heterotrophic cultivation in the absence of photosynthesis and for transformation and selection of photosynthesis mutants, both in the nuclear and chloroplast genomes. Transcriptomics will be used to delineate transcripts and to identify footprints of RNA-binding proteins.
– The genomic exploration of microalgae, in particular the evolution of the chloroplast genome and of the OTAFs that assist its expression. Of particular interest to us are a series of wild isolates of C. reinhardtii and related species; Polytomella, a non-photosynthetic relative of Chlamydomonas that has lost the chloroplast genome; the construction of an orthology database for green algae and diatoms