Research Activities at Geneva University from 2004 to 2013

From 2004 to 2013 I collaborated with different research groups and for each of these collaborations I took charge of the histo/cytological experiments, from the sample selection until the micrographs and their interpretation. All the micrographs on this site related to these collaborations concern wild phenotypes.

Collaborations with research groups at the Department of Botany and Plant Biology 

1. Groups of professors Jean David Rochaix and Michel Goldschmidt – Clermont – Laboratory of Molecular Genetic of Chloroplasts – From 2004 to 2013.

Study of membrane assembly of chloroplasts in the unicellular green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii  and the flowering land plant Arabidopsis thaliana, in wild type and mutants phenotypes affected in the formation of thylakoids. Cellular approach using transmission electron microscopy, immunofluorescence and confocal microscopy.

Collaborations with: Dr Freddy Barnèche; PhD Students: Vera Göhre, Iga Samol; Silvia Ramundo.
Publications: Barnèche F et al. (2006) EMBO J; Göhre V et al. (2006) Plant Cell; Fristedt R et al. (2009) Plant Cell.; Samol I.et al. (2012). Plant Cell ; Ramundo S et al. (2014). Plant cell.

2. Group of Professor Teresa Fitzpatrick – Plant Biochemistry and Physiology Laboratory. Metabolism of vitamins in plants – From 2010 to 2013. Study of B6 vitamin (effect on the growth of the embryo) and of vitamin B1 (transport) in Arabidopsis, wild types and mutants. Cellular approach: transmission electron microscopy, light and confocal microscopy.
Collaborations with: Svetlana Boycheva (PhD student); Dr Elisabeth Gas -Pascual.
Publication: Raschke M et al. (2011) Plant J.; Martinis J et al. (2016)

3. Group of Dr Xavier Perret – Laboratory of Microbial Genetics – From 2009 to 2012. Cytological study of nodules induced on roots of different legume plants (Lotus japonicus, Vigna u ; Leucaena leucocephala ; Tephrosia vogelii) by the bacteria Rhizobium sp. NGR234 (a bacteria with a broad spectrum of host plants) and different mutants of this bacteria strain, using light and transmission electron microscopy.
Collaborations with: Nadia Bakkou (PhD Student); Dr M. Saad.
Publication: Saad M.et al.(2012). Appl Environ Microbiol.; Saad M et al. (2019) Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions.

4. Group of Professor Jurek Paszkowski – Laboratory of Plant Genetic – From 2008 to 2012. Determination and localization of a retro transposon ONSEN activated by heat stress in Arabidopsis thaliana. Development of anthers in Arabidopsis th., wild type and mutant.
Approach: light microscopy ; transmission electron microscopy ; epi fluorescence.
Collaboration with: Drs Etienne Bucher, Marco Catoni; Hervé Gauber (PhD student).

5.  Group of Professor Luis Lopez -Molina – Seed Molecular Genetics – From 2009 to 2011. Control of germination of Arabidopsis thaliana seeds. Rôle of abscissic acid in Arabidopsis thaliana, seeds from wild type and abi5 mutants.
Approach: light microscopy; transmission electron microscopy
Collaborations: Drs Natsuko; U. Piskurewicz

6. Group of Professor Claude Penel – Laboratory of Plant Physiology – From 2004 to 2006. In situ detection of Reactive oxygen species in Arabidopsis roots using HPF (hydroxyphenyl fluorescein) as fluorescent detector. Observations using confocal microscopy. 
Publication: Dunand C. et al. (2007) New Phytol.

7. Group of Professor William Broughton – Molecular Biology of Superior Plants – From 2006 to 2009. Cytological (light and transmission electron microscopy) study of nodules induced on roots of Lotus japonicus and Vigna unguiculata: cellular comparative study of nodules induced by (1) Mezorhizobium loti and Rhizobium sp. NGR234 on host plant Lotus japonicus ; (2) by Rhizobium sp.NGR234 (wild type and mutants strains of surface polysaccharides) on the host plant Vigna unguiculata.
Collaborations with: Drs Olivier Schumpp, Antoine Le Quéré and William Deakin.
Publication: Schumpp O et al. (2008) J Exp Bot.

Collaboration with Dr Nicolas Capelli 
Laboratory of Chrono-Environment (UMR CNRS 6249 usc INRA) University of « Franche – Comté » (Fr).

From 2007 – 2012. «Study of the cellular response of different forest species to flooding stress ». Problematic: in France it is estimated that 2 million hectares of soil are exposed to flooding. This mainly induces an oxygen deficit in the soil (hypoxy or anoxy) which is harmful for the roots. Little is still known about the nature of response of woody trees to this kind of stress. Pedunculate oak (Quercus robur L) and sessile oak (Quercus petrae L.), two most common woody species in central Europa, show an opposite tolerance against ou towards flooding. The objective was the study of cellular and molecular bases of the difference of sensibility of these two species towards different periods of flooding. Initially this collaboration focused on the study of non – symbiotic hemoglobin expression and on cellular modifications in roots of the two oak species submitted to short and long flooding periods. It was performed by a Master Student Audrey BERGER (University of Geneva, 2007). The title of this work was “In situ hybridization study of no symbiotic hemoglobin in two oak ecotypes in response to flooding”.

Publications: Parent C et al. (2008) New Phytol ; Parent et al. (2008) Plant Signaling & Behavior; Parent et al. (2011) Plant Cell Environment.
This collaboration then focused on the study of genes involved in mechanisms of regulation of water flow among which aquaporins but also in programmed cellular death. The study was multidisciplinary using both molecular and cellular biology. See the thesis of Claire Depardieu in Besançon .
Publication: C. Rasheed-Depardieu et al. PLoS One (2012) open access on line.

Collaboration with the professor Herve Vanderschuren

Department of Biology – Institute of Agricultural Sciences – Group of Plant Biotechnology- Cassava Research – ETH Zurich – From 2010 to 2011. Histology of Cassava roots.

In progress : my research activities from 1975 to 2003.