The freshwater shrimp Macrobrachium rosenbergii represents a promising diversification opportunity for the pond fish industry, which is hard hit by the effects of climate change. Able to be raised in semi-extensive conditions with few inputs, M. rosenbergii meets growing consumer demand by offering a local, high-quality and eco-responsible alternative to imported shrimps. The overall aim of the OPTICED project is to support the transition/diversification of the pond fish farming industry through research aimed at optimizing yields and controlling potential animal health and environmental risks. By contributing to the deployment of a sustainable farming method adapted to climate change, the OPTICED project is in line with the orientations of the Aquaculture d'Avenir 2021-2027 Plan and the 5 axes of the AAP "Promoting sustainable aquaculture activities". This project is financed by FEAMPA.
A project funded by the FWF (Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung, corresponding to ANR in Austria) has been obtained in partnership with the team of Mark Wossidlo from the Medical University of Vienna.
The goal of this project is to compare the methylation of DNA and the transcriptome in isolated oocytes of common perch. This comparison will allow to study the heterogeneity of oocytes in ovary and the variation of methylation and the transcriptional state of oocytes during oogenesis and under the effect of temperature (one of the regulating factors of oogenesis).
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The Polyras project deals with the optimisation of the aquaculture production by RAS (recirculated aquaculture system) and the reduction of its environmental footprint by the use of polyculture in the Great Region. This project includes, besides economic and methodological partners, 4 scientific partners : Liège University, the leader of the project, the CERER pisciculture, the Technical University of Kaiserslautern and Lorraine University. Our team will be in charge of the WP1 on the determination of the combination of favourable species for closed farming systems (RAS and aquaponics).
Website of the project : https://www.polyras.uliege.be/
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Aquaserv is a European project gathering 34 partners from 6 European research infrastructures with a total funding of 14,15 millions euros under the coordination of the Centro Ciencas do Mar do Algarve (CCMAR). For L2A, the objectif is to share the European aquaculture research infrastructures and to multiply interactions between researchers and technicians in aquaculture research.
More infosAs of 2018, TOFF (i.e. Traits OF Fish) is a database focused on functional trait information for fish. It aims to bring together behavioral, morphological, phenological and physiological traits associated with the context of environmental measurements in a single, open-access repository. TOFF hosts data from previously published experimental and field studies. It aims to provide the widest possible source of information to facilitate advances in fish research. See the website at: http://toff-project.univ-lorraine.fr
ValoSEPURE has obtained in January 2026 the financial support of the European Fisheries and Maritime Affairs Fund to develop original and diversified communications about ponds as agroecosystems. The program goals are diverse: i) to promote sustainable and competitive fish farming practices, ii) to strengthen at a national level the links and knowledge sharing between fish farmers and iii) to develop a wider community of actors affected by ponds (opening up local actors such as managers of aquatic environments, facilitators of aquaculture sector, training centers as well as their students).
The question is to better know and make known the operation of fish ponds, their management et the new challenges to be met, by supporting fish farmers towards new ways to produce. This work will benefit during two years from the expertise of a consortium of 13 researchers and engineers from five institutes (ISARA-ISEMA group, INRAE- SAS, Institut Agro Rennes-Angers, ITAVI, L2A) under the coordination of Marielle Thomas.
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The ‘1000 Étangs’ project is an interdisciplinary research programme supported by the Haute Saône département over six years (2021 to 2027). Its aim is to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the Mille Étangs area, in order to encourage sustainable development, support professional integration, local entrepreneurship and make the most of the area's resources.
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The GLANISTOX project aims to improve the monitoring of chemical contamination in inland aquatic environments by employing an innovative approach: the study of a top predator, the wels catfish, as an integrated indicator of pollution and the transfer of contaminants within food chains.
Led by Damien Banas (L2A) and Olivier Cardoso (French Biodiversity Agency), this project lies at the intersection of environmental research, ecotoxicological risk assessment and food safety issues relating to products derived from aquatic environments.
The project brings together a scientific consortium comprising the University of Lorraine (L2A), ONIRIS (LABERCA), INRAE (UMR ECOBIOP) and the French Office for Biodiversity, ensuring complementarity between environmental ecology, chemical analysis and risk assessment for the food chain.
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CABARETox is a research project of the MRCA team carried out in collaboration with the OFB (Office Français de la Biodiversité) and the ANSES (Agence nationale de sécurité sanitaire de l'alimentation, de l'environnement et du travail).
This project follows on from the CABARET project, which highlighted the presence of numerous transformation products (TPs) of Phyto-Pharmaceutical Products (PPPs) in the aquatic ecosystems of the headwaters of basins at concentrations often higher than those of their parent molecules. Among these ecosystems exposed to PPPs and TPs, ponds are home to a large biodiversity (avifauna, ichthyofauna, batrachians, etc.) likely to be exposed to these contaminants.
CABARETox will aim to provide information on the toxicity of the PTs most commonly encountered and to assess the health status of aquatic organisms in ponds located in catchment areas selected on the basis of a PPP exposure gradient.
This project, under the scientific coordination of Damien Banas, is positioned at the heart of URAFPA's "water-contaminant" transversal action.
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The project Hydro-ecological Conditions for the Emergence of Botulism and Occurrence of Toxins in Ponds (CHABOTÉ) aims to identify the environmental conditions and hydro-ecological mechanisms that favour the emergence of episodes of avian botulism, a disease responsible for significant mortality in many French ponds.
Led by Damien Banas (University of Lorraine, L2A) and Ariane Payne (French Office for Biodiversity), this project is being conducted in collaboration with ANSES (Céline Richomme and Caroline Le Maréchal) and the Marais d'Orx and Lac du Der nature reserves. The project is based on in situ monitoring and analysis of flows between biotic and abiotic compartments in lentic ecosystems, including the Der and Marais d'Orx ponds, which are currently affected, while the ponds in Lorraine still appear to be relatively unspoilt. In the context of global warming, CHABOTÉ aims to assess the future vulnerability of these systems and to produce knowledge that can be used for the prevention and management of health risks.
The PNR ESToxine Botulique project aims to understand the environmental, hydro-ecological, bacteriological and ornithological conditions that may lead to the occurrence of avian botulism outbreaks in French lentic ecosystems. It builds on the CHABOTÉ research into the conditions under which botulism occurs and the presence of toxins in ponds.
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Although its use was banned more than 30 years ago, chlordecone (CLD), a persistent organic pollutant, and its metabolite, chlordecol (CLD-OH), are still found in some soils in the French West Indies. Ingested by humans and animals, mainly through food, CLD is responsible for the development of cancer, particularly of the prostate, and neurological disorders. An aldo keto reductase (AKR1C4) in the liver of animals is thought to be responsible for transforming CLD into CLD-OH.
The aim of this project is to study the cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in the toxicity of CLD and its metabolite, CLD-OH, on liver and adipocyte cells in order to gain a better understanding of their mode of action in vivo.
The GLAN’EST project aims to deepen our understanding of chemical contamination in aquatic environments in Lorraine, focusing on the Meuse and Moselle river basins, with particular attention paid to the transfer of contaminants within food chains and their implications for the quality of fishery resources.
Led by Damien Banas (University of Lorraine, L2A laboratory) and co-funded by the Rhine-Meuse Water Agency (AERM), this project is a direct continuation of the GLANISTOX programme, of which it constitutes an operational extension at regional level, explicitly integrating the issues of food safety and the utilisation of products derived from aquatic environments.
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