Group leader : Bruno Franzetti
RESEARCH ACTIVITIES
The ELMA group seeks to understand how microbes present in the most extreme environments have developed unique metabolisms at the thermodynamics limit of Life and how they manage to maintain a healthy proteome in high temperature, pressure or salt conditions. This research is pushing back our understanding of the resilience of living organisms, in terms of energy sources, stability of biomolecules, molecular evolution as well as novel cellular machineries.
Our work mainly focusses on biological systems derived from Archaea. These prokaryotic organisms differ from the bacteria. They represent an important part of the earth’s microbiota, play crucial roles in the geo-chemical cycles but remain the most unexplored part of the living world. They have developed a metabolic plasticity that enables them to thrive in the most hostile environments.
In addition to exploring the uniqueness of Archaeal adaptability, cellular processes and metabolisms, our activities provide a rational framework for understanding the origins of Life and guiding the search for Life in the Universe. Our extremophile-focused basic research activities also aims to offer innovative solutions for industry such as alternative energy sources, robust biocatalysts for a cleaner industry and protein hydrolysates for the nutrition/health/cosmetic sectors.
The ELMA research activity is divided into two axes :
Molecular Limits of Life
We aim to identify, via a proteome-wide approach, the molecular mechanisms specifically associated with maintaining proteins integrity and activity under extreme temperature, pressure and salt conditions. The second project on cellular environmental adaptation is focused on the regulation of the archaeal proteasome from hyper-thermophilic/deep sea Archaea and its role on stress response. This knowledge is used to develop innovative biotechnologies for the agri-food sector, in particular through research and engineering of new extremophilic peptidases from marine environments.
Microbial Metabolism (T. Wagner’s ERC team)
We aim to unveil catabolic and assimilatory pathways of anaerobic chemoautotrophs. Our topics mainly focus on microbes thriving at the thermodynamics limit, such as methanogens, acetogens, and alkanotrophs. We rely on an integrative native approach combining microbial physiology, enzymology, biochemistry, and structural biology, all mostly performed under anaerobic conditions to protect sensitive metallo-centers.
SPECIFIC METHODS
To tackle these exiting challenges the ELMA group displays specific equipment for enzymatic, biophysical and structural studies under extreme temperature, pressure and anoxic conditions, as well as specific skills in microbiology and biochemistry and structural biology : native complexes purifications and advanced X-ray crystallography methods that complement cryo-EM approaches. We also have a strong interest in native approaches to identifying supramolecular complexes involved in extremophilic adaptation / and archaeal metabolism by using cellular interactomics, purification of native complexes, proteomics and biophysics on archaeal proteomes.
KEY WORDS
Extremophiles. Archaea. Environmental adaptation. Molecular Evolution. Exobiology. Deep sea. Halophiles. Thermophiles. Psychrophiles. Piezophiles. Proteasomes. Chaperones. Peptidases. TET. Malate dehydrogenase. Allostery. Industrial enzymes.
