The thematic axis « hydrogen and associated metabolisms » is a historical axis in the BIP laboratory. The key enzymes of the micro-organisms hydrogen metabolism are the hydrogenases, which catalyze the proton to dihydrogen conversion. Hydrogenases are classified in two main families, depending on the metal content of their active site: NiFe hydrogenases and FeFe hydrogenases.
The thematic axis « hydrogen and associated metabolisms » brings together five of the seven teams of the laboratory. The different teams work around this axis on different biological models and with different area of focus. The thematic axis “hydrogen” includes a large panel of approaches, from the molecular studies of the two families of hydrogenases to determine their catalytic and inhibition mechanisms, through immobilization of hydrogenases onto electrodes for biofuel cell applications, the role of these enzymes in energy metabolism of micro-organisms, to hydrogen bioproduction by bacterial consortia or from biomass.