General information
Organisation
The French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) is a key player in research, development and innovation in four main areas :
• defence and security,
• nuclear energy (fission and fusion),
• technological research for industry,
• fundamental research in the physical sciences and life sciences.
Drawing on its widely acknowledged expertise, and thanks to its 16000 technicians, engineers, researchers and staff, the CEA actively participates in collaborative projects with a large number of academic and industrial partners.
The CEA is established in ten centers spread throughout France
Reference
SL-DRF-27-0285
Direction
DRF
Thesis topic details
Category
Life Sciences
Thesis topics
Optimization of CotA bacterial laccases (Bacillus subtilis) and their Pseudomonas homologs for the biodegradation of PFAS under biofilm growth conditions: an integrated approach combining enzyme engineering and microbial ecophysiology
Contract
Thèse
Job description
PFAS comprise a family of more than 6,000 virtually indestructible fluorinated compounds that are now subject to European regulations. Existing treatment processes are costly, energy-intensive, or waste-generating, and biological approaches face a major hurdle: effectively defluorinating PFOA and PFOS quickly and at high concentrations remains impossible to date. Among the candidate enzymes, laccases stand out: functioning in the open air, they break down PFOA in the presence of mediators. However, the literature remains dominated by fungal enzymes, which are effective in acidic environments, whereas the water to be treated is neutral to basic. The project therefore focuses on the CotA laccase from Bacillus subtilis—which is heat-stable, active in basic environments, naturally bound to the spore, and easily optimizable—as well as on Pseudomonas strains capable of forming pollutant-tolerant biofilms. During sessile growth, the biofilm matrix traps PFAS, protects the enzyme, and creates conditions favorable for co-metabolism. Since this approach has never been quantified, it opens up an unexplored scientific niche.
University / doctoral school
Chimie et Sciences du Vivant (EDCSV)
Université Grenoble Alpes
Thesis topic location
Site
Grenoble
Requester
Position start date
01/10/2027
Person to be contacted by the applicant
Lelong Cécile
cecile.lelong@univ-grenoble-alpes.fr
université Grenoble Alpes
LCBM
iRTSV/LCBM
17, rue des martyrs
F-38054 GRENOBLE CEDEX 9
0438783212
Tutor / Responsible thesis director
LELONG Cecile
cecile.lelong@univ-grenoble-alpes.fr
Université Grenoble Alpes
iRTSV/LCBM
17 avenue des Martyrs
CEA Grenoble
0438785872
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