Christine Strullu-Derrien

Biography

Christine Strullu-Derrien is a French scientist specializing in Palaeobotany and Palaeomycology. Her research explores the origin and evolution of fungi and fungi-like microorganisms associated with plants, as well as the development of plant vascular systems. She began her career as a secondary-school biology and geology teacher before returning to academia, earning a PhD in Environmental Sciences (Palaeobotany) from the University of Angers in collaboration with the University of Liège. Her doctoral work included identifying the oldest known fossil wood, about 407 million years old, from the Châteaupanne quarry in western France and the oldest parasitic oomycete (fungus-like microorganism), about 315 million years old, from Dulesgate, West Yorkshire, UK. She completed a Marie Curie postdoctoral fellowship at the Natural History Museum in London, studying fossil plant–fungus interactions, and later held postdoctoral positions at INRAe in Nancy and the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle in Paris. As an independent researcher and scientific associate, she continues collaborations with the NHM and the MNHN, investigating early terrestrial ecosystems, focusing on fungus/microorganism-plant interactions. Beyond research, Strullu-Derrien contributes to scientific outreach, museum exhibitions, and education, founding the PlantEvol initiative to promote fossil plant heritage in western France.