Cristian Forestan

Ricercatore a tempo determinato (RTD-A) all'Università di Bologna dal 2022, svolge le sue ricerche nell'ambito della genetica e genomica delle piante di interesse agrario.

Formazione

Cristian Forestan si è laureato in Biotecnologie - Indirizzo Biotecnologie Agrarie Vegetali, presso la Facoltà di Agraria dell'Università degli Studi di Padova nel 2005. Presso la stessa Università ha ottenuto il Dottorato in Scienze delle Produzioni Vegetali - Indirizzo Agrobiotecnologie nel 2009. Ha lavorato presso il Department of Plant System Biology - VIB – Gent (Belgio).

Carriera accademica

Dal 2009 al 2020 è stato PostDoc presso il Dipartimento di Agronomia Animali Alimenti risorse Naturali e Ambiente - Università degli Studi di Padova, occupandosi prima dello studio del trasporto auxinico durante lo sviluppo della pianta di mais e poi della regolazione trascrizionale ed epigenetica della risposta a stress abiotici in mais.

Dal 2020 è stato prima titolare di borsa di ricerca presso il Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Agro-alimentari (DISTAL) dell’Università di Bologna, per poi diventare ricercatore dal 2022. Si occupa di genomica strutturale e funzionale di frumento, mais e orzo, ed è coinvolto in progetti internazionali di sequenziamenti genomici nella caratterizzazione di QTL e geni di interesse agronomico e nel miglioramento genetico, in particolare nell’architettura dell’apparato radicale e nella risposta a stress biotici e abiotici.

Attività didattica

Dal 2024 svolge attività di docenza come titolare di vari insegnamenti per Corsi di Laurea e Laurea Magistrale per il Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Agro-Alimentari e il Dipartimento di Farmacia e Biotecnologie.

Attualmente è docente di:

• BIOTECNOLOGIE APPLICATE AL MIGLIORAMENTO DELLE SPECIE VEGETALI ANNUALI per il Corso di Laurea Magistrale in Biotecnologie agrarie vegetali
• BIOTECNOLOGIE GENETICHE VEGETALI per il Corso di Laurea in Biotecnologie

Pubblicazioni principali

1. Rodrigues M, Forestan C, Ravazzolo L, Hugueney P, Baltenweck R, Rasori A, Cardillo V, Carraro P, Malagoli M, Brizzolara S, Quaggiotti S, Porro D, Meggio F, Bonghi C, Battista F, Ruperti B. Metabolic and Molecular Rearrangements of Sauvignon Blanc (Vitis vinifera L.) Berries in Response to Foliar Applications of Specific Dry Yeast. Plants (Basel). 2023 Sep 28;12(19):3423. doi: 10.3390/plants12193423.
2. Fusi R, Rosignoli S, Lou H, Sangiorgi G, Bovina R, Pattem JK, Borkar AN, Lombardi M, Forestan C, Milner SG, Davis JL, Lale A, Kirschner GK, Swarup R, Tassinari A, Pandey BK, York LM, Atkinson BS, Sturrock CJ, Mooney SJ, Hochholdinger F, Tucker MR, Himmelbach A, Stein N, Mascher M, Nagel KA, De Gara L, Simmonds J, Uauy C, Tuberosa R, Lynch JP, Yakubov GE, Bennett MJ, Bhosale R, Salvi S. Root angle is controlled by EGT1 in cereal crops employing an antigravitropic mechanism. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2022 Aug 2;119(31):e2201350119. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2201350119.
3. Canton M, Forestan C, Marconi G, Carrera E, Bonghi C, Varotto S. Evidence of chromatin and transcriptional dynamics for cold development in peach flower bud. New Phytol. 2022 Nov;236(3):974-988. doi: 10.1111/nph.18393.
4. Canton M, Farinati S, Forestan C, Joseph J, Bonghi C, Varotto S. An efficient chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) protocol for studying histone modifications in peach reproductive tissues. Plant Methods. 2022 Mar 31;18(1):43. doi: 10.1186/s13007-022-00876-0.
5. Rosignoli S, Cosenza F, Moscou MJ, Civolani L, Musiani F, Forestan C, Milner SG, Savojardo C, Tuberosa R, Salvi S. Cloning the barley nec3 disease lesion mimic mutant using complementation by sequencing. Plant Genome. 2022 Jun;15(2):e20187. doi: 10.1002/tpg2.20187.
6. Condorelli GE, Newcomb M, Groli EL, Maccaferri M, Forestan C, Babaeian E, Tuller M, White JW, Ward R, Mockler T, Shakoor N, Tuberosa R. Genome Wide Association Study Uncovers the QTLome for Osmotic Adjustment and Related Drought Adaptive Traits in Durum Wheat. Genes (Basel). 2022 Feb 2;13(2):293. doi: 10.3390/genes13020293.
7. N. Cainelli, C. Forestan, D. Angeli, T.R. Villegas, F. Costa, A. Botton, A. Rasori, C. Bonghi, B. Ruperti (2021) “Transcriptomic insights on the preventive action of apple (Cv granny smith) skin wounding on superficial scald development”; International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 22 (24), art. no. 13425 DOI: 10.3390/ijms222413425
8. L. Ravazzolo, S. Trevisan, S. Iori, C. Forestan, M. Malagoli and S. Quaggiotti (2021) “Nitrate regulates maize root transcriptome through nitric oxide dependent and independent mechanisms”; International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 22 (17), art. no. 9527 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22179527
9. G.K. Kirschner, S. Rosignoli, I. Vardanega, L. Guo, J. Imani, J. Altmüller, S.G. Milner, R. Balzano, K. A. Nagel, D. Pflugfelder, C. Forestan, R. Bovina, R. Koller, T.G. Stöcker, M. Mascher, J. Simmonds, C. Uauy, H. Schoof, R. Tuberosa, S. Salvi and F. Hochholdinger (2021) "ENHANCED GRAVITROPISM 2 encodes a STERILE ALPHA MOTIVE containing protein that controls root growth angle in barley and wheat"; Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences PNAS 2021 Vol. 118 No. 35 e2101526118 https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2101526118
10. M. Canton*, C. Forestan*, C. Bonghi and S. Varotto (2021) “Meta-analysis of RNA-Seq studies reveals genes with dominant functions during flower bud endo- to eco-dormancy transition in Prunus species” Scientific Reports, 2021, 11(1), 13173 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-92600-6 * these authors contributed equally to this work
11. M. Canton, C. Forestan, S. Farinati, C. Bonghi and S. Varotto (2021) “Epigenetic mechanisms controlling peach bud dormancy and its release: Preliminary results” Acta Horticulturae 1307 ,pp.247
12. E.S. Ober, S. Alahmad, J. Cockram, C. Forestan, L.T. Hickey, J. Kant, M. Maccaferri, E. Marr, M. Milner, F. Pinto, C. Rambla, M. Reynolds, S. Salvi, G. Sciara, R.J Snowdon, P. Thomelin, R. Tuberosa, C. Uauy, K.P. Voss-Fels, E. Wallington and M. Watt (2021) “Wheat root systems as a breeding target for climate resilience” Theor Appl Genet. 2021 Apr 26. doi: 10.1007/s00122-021-03819-w. Online ahead of print. PMID: 33900415
13. S. Farinati, C. Forestan, M. Canton, G. Galla, C. Bonghi and S. Varotto “Regulation of Fruit Growth in a Peach Slow Ripening Phenotype” Genes (Basel). 2021 Mar 26;12(4):482. doi: 10.3390/genes12040482.
14. L. Ravazzolo, S. Boutet-Mercey, F. Perreau, C. Forestan, S. Varotto, B. Ruperti and S. Quaggiotti (2021) “Strigolactones And Auxin Cooperate To Regulate Maize Root Development and Response to Nitrate” Plant Cell Physiol. 2021 Jan 28:pcab014. doi: 10.1093/pcp/pcab014. PMID: 33508105
15. S. Trevisan, C. Forestan, S. Brojanigo, S. Quaggiotti and S. Varotto (2020) “Brassinosteroid application affects the growth and gravitropic response of maize by regulating gene expression in the roots, shoots and leaves” - Plant Growth Regulation 92:117–130
16. S. Farinati*, C. Forestan*, M. Canton, S. Varotto and C. Bonghi (2020) “miRNA regulation of fruit development” in “Plant miRNAs - Shaping Development and Environmental Responses”, Springer NY - 2020 - doi 10.1007/978-3-030-35772-6 - ISBN 978-3-030-35771-9
17. L. Ravazzolo, S. Trevisan, C. Forestan, S. Varotto, S. Sut, S. Dall'Acqua, M. Malagoli and S. Quaggiotti (2020). “Nitrate and Ammonium Affect the Overall Maize Response to Nitrogen Availability by Triggering Specific and Common Transcriptional Signatures in Roots. Int J Mol Sci. 2020 Jan 20;21(2). pii: E686. doi: 10.3390/ijms21020686.
18. C. Forestan, S. Farinati, F. Zambelli, G. Pavesi, V. Rossi and S. Varotto (2020) “Epigenetic signatures of stress adaptation and flowering regulation in response to extended drought and recovery in Zea mays” - Plant Cell Environ. 2020 Jan;43(1):55-75. doi: 10.1111/pce.13660. Epub 2019 Nov 12.
19. C. Forestan, A. Lunardon, S. Farinati and S. Varotto (2018) “Integrating Transcriptome and Chromatin landscapes for deciphering the epigenetic regulation of drought response in maize.” in “The Maize Genome”, Springer NY 2018. doi: 10.1007/978-3-319-97427-9
20. C. Forestan, S. Farinati, J. Rouster, H. Lassagne, M. Lauria, N. Dal Ferro and S. Varotto (2018) “Maize HISTONE DEACETYLASE 108 controls maize vegetative and reproductive development, fertility and rRNAs silencing” Genetics. 2018 Jan 30. doi: 10.1534/genetics.117.300625
21. Lunardon*, C. Forestan*, S. Farinati and S. Varotto (2018) “De Novo Identification of sRNA Loci and Non-Coding RNAs by High-Throughput Sequencing.” in Methods in Molecular Biology “Plant Chromatin Dynamics”, Springer NY - 2018;1675:297-314. doi: 10.1007/978-1-4939-7318-7_17
22. C. Forestan, S. Farinati, R. Aiese Cigliano, A. Lunardon, W. Sanseverino and S. Varotto S. (2017) “Maize RNA PolIV affects the expression of genes with nearby TE insertions and has a genome-wide repressive impact on transcription.” BMC Plant Biol. 2017 Oct 12;17(1):161. doi: 10.1186/s12870-017-1108-1.
23. C. Forestan, R. Aiese Cigliano, S. Farinati, A. Lunardon, W. Sanseverino and S. Varotto (2016) “Stress-induced and epigenetic-mediated maize transcriptome regulation study by means of transcriptome reannotation and differential expression analysis.” Sci Rep. 2016 Jul 27;6:30446. doi: 10.1038/srep30446.
24. Lunardon, C. Forestan, S. Farinati, MJ. Axtell, and S. Varotto (2016) “Genome-Wide Characterization of Maize Small RNA Loci and Their Regulation in the required to maintain repression6-1 (rmr6-1) Mutant and Long-Term Abiotic Stresses.” Plant Physiol. 2016 Mar;170(3):1535-48. doi: 10.1104/pp.15.01205.
25. F. Morari, F. Meggio, A. Lunardon, E. Scudiero, C. Forestan, S. Farinati an S. Varotto (2015) “Time course of biochemical, physiological, and molecular responses to field-mimicked conditions of drought, salinity, and recovery in two maize lines.” Front Plant Sci. 2015 May 12;6:314. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2015.00314. eCollection 2015.
26. L. Jansen, J. Hollunder, I. Roberts, C. Forestan, P. Fonteyne, C. Van Quickenborne, RG. Zhen, B. McKersie, B. Parizot and T. Beeckman (2013). “Comparative transcriptomics as a tool for the identification of root branching genes in maize.” Plant Biotechnol J. 2013,11(9):1092-102. doi: 10.1111/pbi.12104.
27. C. Forestan and S. Varotto (2012). “Auxin immunolocalization in plant tissues.” Methods Mol Biol. 2013;959:223-33. doi: 10.1007/978-1-62703-221-6_15 - In Plant Organogenesis: Methods and Protocols, Humana Press - Springer.
28. C. Forestan, N. Carraro and S. Varotto (2012). “Protein immunolocalization in maize tissues.” Methods Mol Biol. 2013;959:207-22. doi: 10.1007/978-1-62703-221-6_14 - In Plant Organogenesis: Methods and Protocols, Humana Press - Springer.
29. C. Forestan, S. Farinati and S. Varotto (2012). “The maize PIN gene family of auxin transporters.” Front Plant Sci. 2012;3:16. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2012.00016. Epub 2012 Feb 8.
30. C. Forestan and S. Varotto (2012). “The role of PIN auxin efflux carriers in polar auxin transport and accumulation and their effect on shaping maize development.” Mol Plant. 2012 Jul;5(4):787-98. ISSN: 1674-2052, doi: 10.1093/mp/ssr103.
31. S. Varotto and C. Forestan (2010). “Understanding epialleles formation in response to environmental cues and their heritability in plants.” Maydica 55:275-279
32. C. Forestan and S. Varotto (2010). “PIN1 auxin efflux carriers localization studies in Zea mays.” Plant Signaling and Behaviour, Volume 5, Issue 4, April 2010.
33. C. Forestan, S. Meda and S. Varotto (2009). “ZmPIN1-mediated Transport of Auxin is Related to Cellular Differentiation During Maize Embryogenesis and Endosperm Development.” Plant Physiol. 152: 1373-1390.
34. M. Salmaso, C. Forestan, S. Varotto and M. Lucchin (2009). “Biodiversity of Local Italian Grapevine Cultivars Detected by SSR Markers.” ISHS Acta Horticulturae - IX International Conference on Grape Genetics and Breeding. 827:137-141
35. N. Carraro, C. Forestan, S. Canova, J. Traas and S. Varotto (2006). “ZmPIN1a and ZmPIN1b Encode Two Novel Putative Candidates for Polar Auxin Transport and Plant Architecture Determination of Maize.” Plant Physiol. 142: 254-264.