(Last modified 2021/12/08)
Most cells, eukaryotes and prokaryotes, live within the context of a community in interaction with its environment rather than being autonomous cells isolated from their suroundings. As biophysicists, we are interested in various physical properties of these cells and their assembly, with a past emphasis on the mechanical behavior of bacterial biofilms and of eukaryotes cells enriched in intermediate filaments. We try to describe and understand these complex systems using experimental approaches traditionally used in the research field of soft matter and we also consider the active and adaptive response of the systems. Specific and original instruments and settings are engineered to measure the physical properties which would complement the knowledge of biologists and medical scientists among others. Most of our study and publications are the results of a collaborative and interdisciplinary work with academic or industrial partners.
Part of the members teach Physics and Biophysics at the Paris-Saclay University and the other part belongs to the french academic research center, C.N.R.S