Pierre Joris

It was during a four-month internship at Puratos in Belgium that Pierre learned about fermentation and developed a passion for bioreactors. As a child, he dreamed of being a chef, and working on a bioreactor is similar in some ways. It all comes down to developing the best recipe: setting up liquid culture media, optimizing the temperature and reaction time, and discovering the results.

In 2020, Pierre completed his degree in biological engineering at ENSMAC¹ – Bordeaux INP, and did his end-of-study internship at TBI on implementing a flow-cytometry continuous analysis tool for monitoring yeast cultures in bioreactors. The internship morphed into a PhD thesis, and today Pierre is a PhD student on the AstroPOU project , which is part of the Spaceship FR project, in collaboration with the CNES². The aim of the project is to find ways of using microbes to turn organic waste into useful products. Ultimately, the goal is to produce proteins for food or bioplastics within a life-support system on a future lunar or Martian base. By studying the Cupriavidus necator bacterium, Pierre is playing a part in the various space agencies’ drive to reboot space conquest. He made a brilliant presentation of his thesis at the regional final of the MT180 competition (modelled on the Three Minute Thesis – 3MT® competition) at the Théâtre Sorano in Toulouse.

For Pierre, being a PhD student is an incredible opportunity for professional growth through a role halfway between student and employee. He is able to focus on a research project and work on a campus where researchers and students come together in an environment that promotes encounters and discovery. For Pierre, being a PhD student is about being curious, persistent, rigorous and resilient.