His research interests (over 140 publications) were first the structure and functions of plant cell walls, using marine macroalgae as experimental systems. He then addressed various other aspects of basic plant biology, such as the origin and evolution of plastids and mitochondria, again using marine algae as models. He is also interested in technology transfer and he created and directed, from 1999-2003, a joint laboratory with a SME, The Goëmar Laboratories (St Malo, France), to develop the use of oligosaccharides for diseasecontrol in agricultural crops (12 patents, one product on the market).