Motility of typical excavates

An extraordinary diversity lies within our oceans and lakes, particularly at the microscopic scale. Understanding the behaviours of this microscopic life, the rich interactions that rule these different ecosystems is primordial if we want to preserve the beautiful biodiversity of our planet. Among all the microorganisms, typical excavates have been receiving a lot of attention from biologists recently, due to their hypothesised proximity with the ancestor of all eukaryotes (LECA).

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With Kirsty Wan and Angéline Girard, I investigate the behaviour of different species of typical excavates, and characterise it quantitatively using tools from fluid mechanics and statistical physics.​ This project is also in collaboration with Alastair Simpson (Dalhousie university, Canada), Sei Suzuki-Tellier and Thomas Kiørboe (DTU, Denmark).