Dr. Stéphane Compant works on the understanding of plant colonization processes by pathogenic and beneficial fungi and beneficial bacteria (in the rhizosphere and as endophytes in vegetative and reproductive/disseminative organs). He also deciphers specific plant-microbe and plant-microbe-microbe associations. Aspects of microbial ecology, in-depth analysis of microbial behaviour of strains colonizing ligneous or non-ligneous plants and their genomic contents are further studied.