My research interest lies within microbial ecophysiology and single cell microbiology with emphasis on the study of microbial metabolic interactions in natural and synthetic environments. My aim is to understand the way microorganisms are pairing with each other structurally and metabolically and the underlaying mechanisms that lead to the successful functioning of such partnerships. A dedicated part of my research involves methodological developments coupling the use of chemical imaging by mass spectrometry and spectroscopy, isotope tracers and high-resolution electron and light microscopy to study microbial metabolism and interactions with single cell resolution. Correlative analyses for identification, quantification and chemical mapping of microbial cells, subcellular components and their metabolic products it is at the forefront of my current research.
