Margot Grimonpont

With a background in engineering and microbial biotechnology and a PhD in agricultural sciences, my aim is to gain a better understanding of the mechanisms of action of biocontrol and biostimulation products in order to optimise their production and efficacy, and thereby promote their wider integration into an integrated crop protection approach. During my PhD, carried out at INRAE in collaboration with a private company, I focused on the mechanisms of action of bacterial biocontrol agents and the influence of environmental factors on their efficacy against Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, the pathogen responsible for sclerotinia stem rot in oilseed rape.

Working at the interface between microbiology, plant pathology and biocontrol, I draw on various approaches involving bacterial fermentation, molecular biology and metabolomics, as well as methods for imaging and the automated quantification of symptoms, from in vitro studies to whole plants.