Main research interests

My research is focused on the co-adaptation between the nuclear and organelle genomes. I am involved in deciphering the impact of cytonuclear genetic interactions on the phenotype in the model plant species A. thaliana, with particular interests on sexual reproduction and on adaptation to the environment.

Selection of 3 major recent publications

Dobler R, Rogell B, Budar F, Dowling DK (2014) A meta-analysis of the strength and nature of cytoplasmic genetic effects. J Evolution Biol 27: 2021–2034

Gobron N, Waszczak C, Simon M, Hiard S, Boivin S, Charif D, Ducamp A, Wenes E, Budar F (2013) A Cryptic Cytoplasmic Male Sterility Unveils a Possible Gynodioecious Past for Arabidopsis thaliana. PLoS ONE 8: e62450

Moison M, Roux F, Quadrado M, Duval R, Ekovich M, Lê D-H, Verzaux M, Budar F (2010) Cytoplasmic phylogeny and evidence of cyto-nuclear co-adaptation in Arabidopsis thaliana. Plant J 63: 728–738

Biography

Françoise Budar is a senior scientist at the French Institute for Agronomical Research, in the Jean-Pierre Bourgin Institute in Versailles, where she leads the group “Organelles and Reproduction”.

She realized her PhD under the Direction of Pr M. Van Montagu, on the genes of the T-DNA (for transferred DNA) of Agrobacterium tumefaciens. She was recruited at INRA as a plant molecular geneticist, in 1986.

She has been working on the interactions between nuclear and organelle genes since 1987. With her colleagues, she identified the genes responsible for male sterility and for restoration of fertility of the Ogu-INRA cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS) system, which has become the most used for seed production of Brassica crops hybrids in Europe. She acquired an internationally recognized expertise in CMS systems. Her work on this CMS system contributed to the understanding of some features of plant mitochondrial gene expression.

Since 2005, she studies cytonuclear interactions in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. She explored the natural genetic diversity of cytoplasmic genomes and discovered a cryptic CMS in this species. With the Versailles Arabidopsis Resource Centre, she developed new genetic resources for the study of cytonuclear interactions, by cytoplasmic exchange among natural accessions.

She has been involved in Master level teaching since 2005, when she created a teaching module on plant sexual reproduction. She has contributed as a biologist to a teaching module for young scientists in biology on statistical modeling since 2007.

Address

Institut Jean-Pierre Bourgin
UMR1318 INRA-AgroParisTech
INRA Centre de Versailles-Grignon
Route de St-Cyr (RD10)
78026 Versailles Cedex France

Francoise.Budar[at]versailles.inra.fr

http://www-ijpb.versailles.inra.fr/en/bs/equipes/organites/index.htm