Nome e Cognome Stefania Gonfloni
Luogo e data di Nascita Roma, 01.12.1967
Nazionalità Italiana
e-mail stefania.gonfloni@uniroma2.it
Formazione
1995 PhD in Biofisica presso la Scuola Internazionale di Studi Superiori Avanzati (SISSA/ISAS), Trieste, Italia
1993 Magister Philosophiae in Biofisica presso la Scuola Internazionale di Studi Superiori Avanzati (SISSA/ISAS), Trieste, Italia
1991 Laurea in Scienze Biologiche, Università degli studi di Roma “Tor Vergata”. Voto:110/110 e lode
Incarichi di Ricerca/Attività Professionali
Dicembre 2022-oggi Professore Associato, settore scientifico disciplinare BIO/18-Genetica
Marzo 2021-oggi Coordinatore Master I livello in Gestione della Sperimentazione Clinica in Ematologia ed Oncologia, Scuola IaD - Università degli Studi di Roma “Tor Vergata”
Novembre 1999 –2022 Ricercatore confermato, settore scientifico disciplinare BIO/18-Genetica
12/1999 - 04/2001 Borsa di studio di post-dottorato presso “The Rockefeller University” New York, USA, - Prof. John Kuriyan.
02/1996 -11/1999 Borsa di studio di post-dottorato presso l’European Molecular Biology (EMBL) – Heidelberg (Germany), - Prof. Giulio Superti-Furga
10/1995 - 01/1996 Borsista presso Medical Research Council (MRC) Cambridge, UK, - Supervisor Prof. Antonino Cattaneo.
10/1991 - 12/1995 Studente di dottorato presso la Scuola Internazionale Superiore Studi Avanzati, (SISSA), Settore di Biofisica. Tesi: “Recombinant Antibodies as Structural Probes for Neurotrophins”, sotto la guida del Prof. Antonino Cattaneo.
04/10/1993 Magister Philosophiae in Biofisica. Tesi: “The neuroantibody Approach: Cloning and Expression of Anti NT-3 Hybridoma Variable Regions for in vivo and in vitro Studies” sotto la guida del Prof. Antonino Cattaneo.
03/1989 – 05/1991 Laureando presso il Dipartimento di Biologia, Università degli Studi di Roma Tor Vergata, Tesi: “Influenza del contesto strutturale sulla conformazione e proprietà di un oligopeptide derivato da IL1b” sotto la guida del Prof. Gianni Cesareni.
Partecipazione scientifica a progetti di ricerca internazionali e nazionali
-Prin (2001-2003) 12 mesi, Ricercatore “La specificità di riconoscimento di domini che legano peptidi fosforilati”.
-Prin (2003-2005) 13 mesi, Ricercatore “Specificità di riconoscimento ed interazioni dei domini proteici FHA e 14-3-3”.
-EU FP7 Affinomics (2008-2013) (400.628,00) 60 mesi, Ricercatore “Protein Binders for Characterisation of Human Proteome Function: Generation, Validation, Application”.
-Grant Mission Substainability, (2018) (18.000,00) 12 mesi, Ricercatore, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Ricercatore “Study of the Role of ATM and c-Abl in Fronto Temporal Dementia”
-Progetto Lazio Innova 2021, Ricercatore “Sviluppo di un kit per la prevenzione dell’osteoporosi basato su rischio genetico e stile di vita” Progetto N. A0375-2020-36631
-Progetto (2023-2026) Ricercatore, “Immunoterapia: cura e prevenzione di malattie infettive e tumorali (Immuno-HUB) finanziato dal Ministero della Salute –Traiettoria 4, “Biotecnologie, Bioinformatica e Sviluppo Farmaceutico” Azione 4.1 “Creazione di Hub delle Scienze della Vita” del Piano di Sviluppo e Coesione Salute- FSC 2014-2020 (Codice T4-CN-02)
Finanziamenti ottenuti come Responsabile Scientifico
-AIRC (2001-2004) (75.000,00) 36 mesi “Structural studies of the molecular interaction between p53 mutants and different isoforms of p73”.
-Télévie (2011-2013) (co-Principal Investigator Prof. Marc Diederich (LBMCC) Luxembourg) “Abl inhibitors to protect germ cells following genotoxic stress” (80.000,00) 24 mesi
-AIRC (2011-2014) (240.000,00) 36 mesi, “Strategies for preserving fertility under cancer treatment”
-Individual Grant MIUR 2017 (3.000,00)
-Grant di Ateneo, Università degli Studi di Roma “Tor Vergata” - 2021 “3D cell culture: studying Chemotherapy-Induced Pathways IN human Granulosa cells” 12 mesi, (13.110,00)
Partecipazione a comitati editoriali di riviste
Topic Editor, International Journal of Molecular Sciences (MDPI) da 2020-presente
https://www.mdpi.com/journal/ijms/special_issues/DNA_Damage_Response_Update
https://www.mdpi.com/journal/ijms/special_issues/moleculargerm_cells
Borse di studio internazionali
-Borsa di studio Post-dottorato Postdoctoral -Human Capital and Mobility Programme (n. ERBCHBGCT940532) EMBL-Heidelberg, Germania dal 02/1996 al 02/1998.
-Borsa di studio della Fondazione “Blanceflor Boncompagni-Ludovisi” utilizzata presso l’European Molecular Biology Laboratory, EMBL-Heidelberg, Germania dal 03/1998 al 11/1999.
-Borsa di studio post-dottorato “Howard Hughes Medical Institute” utilizzata presso il Lab. of Molecular Biophysics HHMI, The Rockefeller University, NY USA dal 12/1999-04/2001.
-Borsa di studio in qualità di visiting researcher utilizzata presso l’University of California, Berkeley USA dal 02/2003 al 04/2003.
Partecipazione a enti o istituti di ricerca, esteri e internazionali, di alta qualificazione
Visiting researcher - Laboratorie de Biologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire du Cancer (LBMCC) diretto dal Prof. Marc Diederich, Lussemburgo, dal 09/2008 –2018
Altra attività scientifica
-Socio ESHRE (European Society for Human reproduction and Embryology); -Socio SRF (Society for Reproduction and Fertility)
Conseguimento di premi e riconoscimenti per l'attività scientifica
Premio di Laurea assegnato dal Consorzio Roma Ricerche per la migliore tesi di laurea svolta nel campo delle Biotecnologie, 01-06-1991
-Articolo di commento “News and Views” in Nature Structural Biology 08-08-1999; -Articolo di commento “News and Views” In Nature Medicine 01-10-2009; -Articolo di commento in Signaling Gateway 01-10-2009; -Articolo di commento in Editors’ choice in Science Signaling 20-10-2009; -Articolo di commento nella rivista “Le Scienze”01-11-2009.
Revisore Ad Hoc per le seguenti riviste scientifiche: Cell Death & Differentiation, Biochemical Pharmacology, The International Journal of Biochemistry & Cell Biology, Cell Death and Diseases, Journal of Cancer Prevention, Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology, Molecular Human Reproduction, Experimental Cell Research, Cancers, Scientific Reports, Cell Cycle, Oncogene, International Journal of Molecular Sciences, Cells, Science Advances da 2008-oggi
Revisore di richieste di finanziamento di progetti: 2014- “The Czech Science Foundation” - Repubblica Ceca dal 01-07-2014 al 01-10-2014; 2021- “Medical Research Council”, UKRI MRC (UK Research and Innovation), Inghilterra dal 01-07-2021 al 01-09-2021; 2024- “United States-Israel Binational Science Foundation”, Israele dal 01-02-2024- al 18-04-2024
Pubblicazioni
1. Contributo in volume - Cesareni G, Castagnoli L, Felici F, Helmer Citterich M, Jappelli R, Tataseo P, Gonfloni S, Musacchio A (1990) Protein vector and oligopeptide libraries for the selection of clone with specific binding properties Amity, 5, p.332-339.
2. Contributo in volume - Castagnoli L, Vetriani C, Gonfloni S, Felici F, Santiago Vispo N, Cesareni G (1993) Selection from a Peptide Library of the Antigenic Determinants of a Protein. Generation of Antibodies by Cell and Gene Immortalization. C. Terhorst, F. Malavasi and A. Albertini, eds. Year Immunol. Basel, Switzerland: Karger AG, 7, p.41-49.
3. Contributo in volume: Ghiara P, Villa L, Rappuoli R, Gonfloni S, Castagnoli L, Cesareni G (1993). Recombinant Protein Antigens with ‘Built in’ Adjuvancy. New Generation Vaccines p.149-154, Springer, ISBN: 978-1-4615-2948-4.
4. Beckers W, Villa L, Gonfloni S, Castagnoli L, Newton SM, Cesareni G, Ghiara P (1993)Increasing the Immunogenicity of Protein Antigens through the Genetic Insertion of VQGEESNDK Sequence of Human IL-1binto their Sequence, Journal of Immunology, 151(4), p.1757-1764.
5. Monografia – trattato scientifico Gonfloni S* (1993) The neuroantibody approach: cloning and expression of anti NT-3 hybridoma variable regions for in vivo and in vitro studies, p. 1-53, Magister philosophiae Thesis. SISSA, Trieste
6. Contributo in volume - Bradbury A, Ruberti F, Werge T, Amati V, Di Luzio A, Gonfloni S, Hoogenboom H, Piccioli P, Biocca S, Cattaneo A (1995)The cloning of hybridoma V regions for their ectopic expression in intracellular and intercellular immunisation. Antibody engineering II: a pratical approach, IRL Press, Oxford, Washington DC.
7. Monografia - trattato scientifico Gonfloni S*(1995). Recombinant Antibodies as Structural Probes for Neurotrophins; p.1-188, PhD thesis. SISSA, Trieste.
8. Superti-Furga G, Gonfloni S (1997). A crystal milestone: the structure of regulated Src, BioEssays, 19(6), p.447-450.
9. Iannolo G, Minenkova O, Gonfloni S, Castagnoli L Cesareni G (1997) Construction, Exploitation and Evolution of a New Peptide Library Displayed at High Density by Fusion to the Major Coat Protein of Filamentous Phage. Biological Chemistry, 378 (6), p.517-521.
10. Williams JC, Weijland A, Gonfloni S, Thompson A, Courtneidge SA, Superti-Furga G, Wierenga RK (1997) The 2.35Å Crystal Structure of the Inactivated Form of Chicken Src: A Dynamic Molecule with Multiple Regulatory Interactions.Journal of Molecular Biology, 274, p.757-775.
11. Gonfloni S, Williams JC, Hattula K, Weijland A, Courtneidge SA, Wierenga RK, Superti-Furga G (1997) The role of the linker between the SH2 domain and catalytic domain in the regulation and function of Src. EMBO Journal, 16(24), p.7261-7271.
12. Superti-Furga G, Barilà D, Dorey K, Gonfloni S (1998). Regulation of the Src and Abl protein tyrosine kinases. FASEB Journal, 8, A1324 Suppl. S.
13. Molnar M, Tongiorgi E, Avignone E, Gonfloni S, Ruberti F, Domenici L, Cattaneo A (1998) The effects of Anti-NGF Monoclonal Antibody on Developing Basal Forebrain Neurons are transient and reversible. EuropeanJournal of Neuroscience, 10, p.3127-3140.
14. Gonfloni S, Frischknecht F, Way M, Superti-Furga G (1999) Leucine 255 of Src couples intramolecular interactions to inhibition of catalysisNature Structural Biology 6 (8), p.760-764.
15. Frischknecht F, Moreau V, Rottger S, Gonfloni S, Reckmann I, Miki H, Superti-Furga G, Way M (1999) Actin based motility of vaccinia virus mimics receptor tyrosine kinase signallingNature, 401 (6756), p.926-929.
16. Barilà D, Mangano R, Gonfloni S, Kretzschmar J, Moro M, Bohmann D, Superti-Furga G (2000) A nuclear tyrosine phosphorylation circuit: c-Jun as an activator and substrate of c-Abl and JNKEMBO Journal 19 (2), p.273-281.
17. Ruberti F, Capsoni S, Comparini A, Di Daniel E, Franzot J, Gonfloni S, Rossi G, Berardi N, Cattaneo A (2000) Phenotypic knockout of nerve growh factor in adult transgenic mice reveals severe deficits in basal forebrain cholinergic neurons.Journal of Neuroscience 20 (7), p.2589-2601.
18. Gonfloni S, Weijland A, Kretzschmar J, Superti-Furga G (2000) Crosstalk between the catalytic and regulatory domains allows bidirectional regulation of Src. Nature Structural Biology, 7 (4), p.281-286.
19. Young MA, Gonfloni S, Superti-Furga G, Roux B, Kuriyan J (2001) Dynamic coupling between the SH2 and SH3 domains of c-Src and Hck underlies their inactivatition by C-terminal tyrosine phosphorylation.Cell 6; 105 (1), p.115-126.
20. Giglione C, Gonfloni S, Parmeggiani A (2001) Differential Actions of p60c-Src and Lck Kinases on the Ras regulators p120-GAP and GDP/GTP exchange factor CDC25Mm.European Journal of Biochemistry, 268(11), p.3275-3283.
21. Castagnoli L, Costantini A, Dall'Armi C, Gonfloni S, Montecchi-Palazzi L, Panni S, Paoluzi S, Santonico E, Cesareni G (2004)Selectivity and promiscuity in the interaction network mediated by protein recognition modules. FEBs Letters 567, p.74-79.
22. Candi E, Cipollone R, Rivetti di Val Cervo P, Gonfloni S, Melino G and Knight R (2008) p63 in epithelial development. Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences, 65 (20), p.3126-3133.
23. Covaceuszach S, Cassetta A, Konarev PV, Gonfloni S, Rudolph R, Svergun DI, Lamba D, Cattaneo A (2008) Dissecting NGF interactions with TrkA and p75 receptors by structural and functional studies of an anti-NGF neutralizing antibody. Journal of Molecular Biology, 381, p.881-896.
24. Paoletti F, Covaceuszach S, Konarev PV, Gonfloni S, Malerba F, Schwarz E, Svergun DI, Cattaneo A and Lamba D (2009) Intrinsic Structural Disorder of Mouse proNGF. Proteins: Structure, Function, and Bioinformatics, 75, p.990-1009.
25. Gonfloni S*, Di Tella L, Caldarola S, Cannata SM, Klinger FG, Di Bartolomeo C, Mattei M, Candi E, De Felici M, Melino G, Cesareni G (2009) Inhibition of the c-Abl –TAp63 pathway protects mouse oocytes from chemotherapy-induced death Nature Medicine, 15, p.1179-1185.
26. Gonfloni S*(2010)Modulating c-Abl nuclear activity as a strategy to preserve female fertilityCell Cycle, 9 (2), p.217-218.
27. Gonfloni S*(2010)DNA damage stress response in germ cells: role of c-Abl and clinical implications. Oncogene, 29 (47), p.6193-6202.
28. Maiani E, Diederich M, Gonfloni S*(2011) DNA damage response: the emerging role of c-Abl as a regolatory switch?Biochemical Pharmacology, 82 (10), p.1269-1276.
29. Gonfloni S*, Maiani E, Di Bartolomeo C, Diederich M, Cesareni G (2012) Oxidative stress, DNA damage and c-Abl Signaling: At the Crossroad in Neurodegenerative Diseases?InternationalJournal of Cell Biology, 1:683097.
30. Maiani E, Di Bartolomeo C, Klinger FG, Cannata SM, Bernardini S, S Chateauvieux S, Mack F, Mattei M, De Felici M, Diederich M, Cesareni G, Gonfloni S*(2012) in Reply to: Cisplatin-induced primordial follicle oocyte killing and loss of fertility are not prevented by imatinibNature Medicine, 8, p.1172-1174.
31. Gonfloni S*(2013) Targeting DNA damage response: Threshold, chromatin landscape and beyond. Pharmacology and Therapeutics, 138(1), p.46-52.
32. Ciccone S, Maiani E, Bellusci G, Diederich M, Gonfloni S*(2013)Parkinson’s Disease: a complex interplay of mitochondrial DNA alterations and oxidative stressInternational Journal of Molecular Sciences, 14 (2), p.2388-2409.
33. Gonfloni S*, Iannizzotto V, Maiani E, Bellusci G, Ciccone S, Diederich M (2014) P53 and Sirt1: Routes of metabolism and genome stability Biochemical Pharmacology, 92(1), p.149-156.
34. Gonfloni S*(2014) Defying c-Abl signaling circuits through small allosteric compoundsFrontiers in Genetics, 5:392.
35. Gonfloni S*, Caputo V, Iannizzotto V (2015) P63 in health and cancerInternational Journal of Developmental Biology, 59(1-3), p.87-93.
36. Bellusci G, Mattiello L, Iannizzotto V, Ciccone S, Maiani E, Villani V, Diederich M, Gonfloni S* (2019) Kinase-independent inhibition of cyclophosphamide-induced pathways protects the ovarian reserve and prolongs fertility Cell Death Disease, 10 (10), p.1-14.
37. Mattiello L, Pucci G, Marchetti F, Diederich M, Gonfloni S* (2021) Asciminib Mitigates DNA damage stress Signaling Induced by Cyclophosphamide in the OvaryInternational Journal of Molecular Sciences, 22(3):1395.
38. Gonfloni S*, Jodice C, Gustavino B, Valentini E (2022) DNA Damage Stress Response and Follicle Activation: Signaling routes of Mammalian Ovarian reserve International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 23(22):14379.
39. Dhori X.,Gioiosa S*.and Gonfloni S* (2024)An integrated analysis of multiple datasets reveals novel gene signatures in human granulosa cells Scientific Data, NPG Nature Research, in revision.
*=corresponding author
Name: Stefania Gonfloni
Place and date of birth: Rome, December 1, 1967
Nationality: Italian
Permanent Address: Dept. of Biology, University of Rome "Tor Vergata" via della Ricerca Scientifica 00133 Rome Italy phone: +39-06-72594315, fax:+39-06-2023500
e-mail: stefania.gonfloni@uniroma2.it
EDUCATION
1995 PhD in Biophysics (International School for Advanced Studies/ISAS Trieste, Italy)
1993 Master in Biophysics (International School for Advanced Studies /ISAS Trieste Italy)
1991 Degree in Biology (LAUREA in Scienze Biologiche, University of Rome "Tor Vergata")
DOCTORAL and POST-DOCTORAL TRAINING
Oct 1991- Dec 1995 PhD student in Biophysics at the ISAS/SISSA Trieste, Italy
Dec 1995-Jan1996 Short Visiting Fellow at the MRC-Cambridge, England
1996-1999 Post-doctoral Fellow at EMBL-Heidelberg, Germany
2000-2001 Post-doctoral Fellow at the Rockefeller University of New York, U.S.A
EMPLOYMENT AND RESEARCH EXPERIENCE
Dec 2022 - present: Associate Professor Genetics
March 2021- present: Coordinator Master I level “Gestione della Sperimentazione Clinica in Ematologia ed Oncologia, Scuola Iad- University of Rome Tor Vergata
2001-2022 Assistant Professor Genetics, Dept. of Biology, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”
2008-2018 Visiting Researcher at Laboratorie de Biologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire du Cancer (LBMCC) in Luxembourg. Field of study: Post-translational modifications of p63 in response to DNA damage. Identification of interactors/regulators of p53 family members
1999-2001 HHMI (Howard Hughes Medical Institue)/Post-doctoral Fellow at The Rockefeller University, New York USA. in the Lab. of Molecular Biophysics directed by Prof. John Kuriyan. Field of study: Cristallographic Studies of Hck in complex with a Src-family selective inhibitor.
1996-1999 Post-doctoral Fellow at EMBL (European Molecular Biology Laboratory), Heidelberg, Germany, in the lab directed by Dr. Giulio Superti-Furga, supported by i) Marie Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship [Feb 1996 - Jan 1998], ii) Institutional EMBL Post-doctoral Fellowship [Feb 1998 - Nov 1998], iii) Postdoctoral Fellowship issued by the Boncompagni-Ludovisi Foundation-Stockolm/Sweden- [Dec 1998-Nov 1999]; Field of study: Structural and Functional Analysis of a proto-oncogene (a non-receptor protein-tyrosine kinase Src).
1995-1996 Short Visiting Fellow at the Medical Research Council (MRC) Cambridge, England in the laboratory of Prof. A. Cattaneo Field of study: Modeling of the antibody molecule, use of docking program to identify the antigen binding surface.
1991-1995 Enrolled in the PhD program in Biophysics at the International School for Advanced Studies S.I.S.S.A./I.S.A.S. Trieste, Italy. Field of study:Use of neutralizing recombinant antibodies to study the structural requirements of the NGF.
1989-1991 Undergraduate student at the Molecular Genetics laboratory directed by Prof. Gianni Cesareni (Dept. of Biology, University of Rome "Tor Vergata". Field of study: Development of Protein Vectors and oligopeptide libraries expressed on phage
AWARDS and HONORS 1991 Award (Premio di Laurea) assigned by Consorzio Roma Ricerche for the best thesis on biotechnological methods
GRANTS: Prin (2001-2003) 12 months (Researcher), AIRC (2001-2003) 36 months as Principal Investigator, Prin (2003-2005) 13 months (Researcher); Progetto europeo ENFIN (2005-2010 60 months(Researcher) ; Progetto europeo EU FP7 Affinomics (2008-2013) 60 months (Researcher); Télévie 2011-2013 (in collaboration with Prof. Marc Diederich LBMCC Luxembourg) 24 months as Principal Investigator; AIRC 2011-2014 (IG11344) 36 mesi as Principal Investigator ; 2017 Individual Grant MIUR; 2018 Grant University of "Tor Vergata"-Mission Sustainability (Researcher), 2021 nGrant University of “Tor Vergata” “3D cell culture: studying chemotherapy – induced Pathways IN human granulosa cells 12 months as Principal Investigator. 2023-2026: “Immunoterapia: cura e prevenzione di malattie infettive e tumorali (Immuno-HUB) finanziato dal Ministero della Salute –Traiettoria 4, “Biotecnologie, Bioinformatica e Sviluppo Farmaceutico” Azione 4.1 “Creazione di Hub delle Scienze della Vita” del Piano di Sviluppo e Coesione Salute- FSC 2014-2020 (Codice T4-CN-02) (as Researcher)
Activity as Reviewer/Topic Editor 2008-present- Reviewer for several International Journals (Oncogene, Cell Death and Differentiation, Cell Death and Disease, Oncotarget, Scientific Reports, Cell Cycle, Biochemical Pharmacology, Cancers, Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology, Reproductive Biology, Scientific Report, Science Advances, Molecular Human Reproduction, etc) . Grant Reviewer 2014: the Czech Science Foundation – the main public funding agency in the Czech Republic supporting all areas of basic scientific research, 2021 MRC Cambridge UKRI, 2024 United States-Israel Binationa Science Foundation.
2019-present member of Society for Reproduction and Fertility (SRF), 2023- present member of ESHRE (European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology); 2020-present member of Editorial Board of International Journal of Molecular Sciences-as Topic Editor (MDPI). 2021-presente member of Editorial Board of Clinical and experimental Obstetrics & Gynecology
CURRENT PROJECTS - Targeting the DNA-damage stress response in female germ cells (in vivo, in mouse models) - Modulating the effect of chemotherapy in primary granulosa cells.
More than 30 papers in international refereed journals, h-index 25, citations >2550 (Scopus April 2024)
Selected Publications
1) Gonfloni S*, Jodice C, Gustavino B, Valentini E (2022) DNA Damage Stress Response and Follicle Activation: Signaling routes of Mammalian Ovarian reserve International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 23(22):14379.
2) Mattiello L, Pucci G, Marchetti F, Diederich M, Gonfloni S* Asciminib mitigates DNA damage stress signalling induced by cyclophosphamide in the ovary, 2021 in press
3) Bellusci G, Mattiello L, Iannizzotto V, Ciccone S, Maiani E, Villani V, Diederich M, Gonfloni S* Kinase-independent inhibition of cyclophosphamide-induced pathways protects the ovarian reserve and prolongs fertility. 2019 Sep 27;10(10):726. doi: 10.1038/s41419-019-1961-y.
4) Maiani E, Di Bartolomeo C, Klinger FG, Cannata SM, Bernardini S, Chateauvieux S, Mack F, Mattei M, De Felici M, Diederich M, Cesareni G and Gonfloni S*. Reply to: Cisplatin-induced primordial follicle oocyte killing and loss of fertility are not prevented by imatinib. Nat Med 2012 Aug; 18 (8): 1172-4 doi: 10.1038/nm.2852 4)
5) Gonfloni S*, Di Tella L, Caldarola S, Cannata SM, Klinger FG, Di Bartolomeo C, Mattei M, Candi E, De Felici M, Melino G, and Cesareni G. Inhibition of the c-Abl-TAp63 pathway protects mouse oocytes from chemotherapy-induced death Nat. Med. (2009),15(10):1179-85
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Signal transduction, DNA damage response. In the span of my scientific career I have been dealing with different topics, and each and every one of these experiences have contributed to enrich my skills and expertise. As an undergraduate student at the University of Rome Tor Vergata, I worked on the development of Phage peptide display technologies. I moved to Trieste (SISSA/ISAS) to get a PhD in Biophysics, working on chicken neurons, testing the effect of neutralizing recombinant antibodies against neurotrophins. I spent my first post-doc period at EMBL in Heidelberg (Germany), where I acquired a solid background in biochemistry and structural biology on Src tyrosine kinases, using as cell systems both yeast (S.pombe) and mammalian cells (human fibroblasts). During my second post-doc at the Rockefeller University in New York, I further strengthened my skills in structural biology by learning how to purify proteins and grow crystals and solve their structure. As assistant professor at the University of Rome Tor Vergata I have used a Phage display cDNA brain library (T7) for screening novel interactors/regulators/modifiers for p53 family members (i.e. mutant p53, p63). I have characterized post-translational modifications of p63 induced by various DNA damage stressors. I have been interested in understanding DNA damage stress response in female germ cells (in vivo, in mouse) induced by chemotherapeutic drugs. I have developed a win-win strategy of mitigating DNA damage and highlighting key regulatory nodes of chemo-induced paths in vivo in female germ cells by using small molecules. In summary, my work is best defined as a combination of basic, yet innovative science, with strong translational interests.