University Education:
Oct 26, 2004: Bachelor's Degree in Health Biotechnology (Class: L-2), University of Naples Federico II (110/110 cum laude). Thesis: "Development of a cell line for the safe production of adenoviral vectors."
Jul 26, 2006: Master's Degree in Medical Biotechnology (Class: LM-9), University of Naples Federico II (110/110 cum laude). Thesis: "Development of a DNA vaccine for feline leukemia virus."
Nov 24, 2010: Ph.D. in Molecular Medicine, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan (SSD: BIO/13-Applied Immunology). Thesis: "Molecular Machines in the Secretory Protein Factory: the task of IgM polymerization."
Internships
Sep 2006 – Dec 2006: Scholarship, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, at the Laboratory of Protein Folding and Secretion (Director: Prof. Roberto Sitia).
Training Courses:
May 18-21, 2008: Course in Optical and Electron Microscopy, ALEMBIC, Advanced Light and Electron Microscopy BioImaging Center, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University.
Nov 17-20, 2008: Immunology Course, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University.
Oct 19, 2011: Course in the Management of Experimental Animals, Stabulario dell’Università di Modena e Reggio Emilia.
Nov 16-17, 2015: The Biobank of Biological Samples: Regulatory, Organizational, and Scientific Aspects, Rizzoli Orthopedic Institute, Bologna.
Educational Activities - Teaching:
2007/2008 to 2011/2012 Academic Years: Instructor for the course "Cellular and Molecular Biology" (BIO/11 – BIO/13) for the Medicine and Surgery Degree program at Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan.
Mentoring, Thesis Supervision
2020: Co-supervisor for the thesis titled "Study of the Effect of Microenvironmental Acidity on the Early Stages of Osteosarcoma Metastasis Using Microfluidic 3D Models."
2021: Co-supervisor for the thesis titled "Evaluation of the Effect of Hypoxia on the Survival of Doxorubicin-Resistant Osteosarcoma Cells."
2022: Co-supervisor for the thesis titled "Study of the Role of the Unfolded Protein Response in Managing Cellular Stress in Osteosarcoma Cells."
2022: Co-supervisor for the thesis titled "Effect of Microenvironmental Acidity and Sphingosine-1-Phosphate on Tumor Vascularization Using 3D and Microfluidic Models."
2022: Co-supervisor for the thesis titled "Characterization of a New Platform for the Development and Study of Osteosarcoma Spheroids In Vitro."
Research Contracts:
September 2006 – December 2006: Scholarship, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, at the Laboratory of Protein Folding and Secretion under the supervision of Prof. Roberto Sitia.
January 2007 – November 2010: Research Fellowships at the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, with the project titled "Interaction between ERGIC-53 and its mu substrate: Role of the N-terminal sugar." Scientific-disciplinary sector BIO/11 - Molecular Biology. The project was coordinated by Prof. Roberto Sitia. The research fellowship activities were carried out within the doctoral program of Vita-Salute San Raffaele University in Molecular Medicine, SSD Bio/11, at Prof. Roberto Sitia's laboratory.
December 2010 – August 2010: Project collaboration for the study on "Protein and redox homeostasis in the secretory pathway: exploiting stress against cancer" as part of the research project coordinated by Prof. Roberto Sitia at Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan.
September 2011 – October 2014: Research Fellow on the project titled "Improvement of tools for the molecular diagnosis of FSHD." Scientific-disciplinary sector MED/03 (Medical Genetics). The fellowship was conducted at the Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, in Prof. Rossella Tupler's laboratory.
November 2014 – January 2015: Scholar, Department of Biomedical and Nanobiotechnology Sciences and Technologies, Rizzoli Orthopedic Institute, Bologna.
February 2016 – August 2018: Research Fellow, University of Bologna, Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, within the Biomedical Sciences and Technologies, Rizzoli Orthopedic Institute, Bologna.
September 2018 – October 2019: Scholar, Department of Biomedical Sciences and Technologies, Rizzoli Orthopedic Institute, Bologna.
November 2019 – February 23, 2020: Research Fellow, University of Bologna, Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, within the Biomedical Sciences and Technologies, Rizzoli Orthopedic Institute, Bologna.
February 24, 2020 – January 31, 2023: Health Researcher, Department of Biomedical and Nanobiotechnology Sciences and Technologies, Rizzoli Orthopedic Institute, Bologna.
From February 1, 2023, to present: Junior assistant professor, University of Bologna, Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, within the Biomedical Sciences and Technologies, MED/50, Rizzoli Orthopedic Institute, Bologna.
Research Projects:
(Collaboration in research projects and leadership in work packages and projects in various years.)
Research Collaborator:
Project: "Targeting tumor-stroma interaction in sarcoma microenvironment to inhibit the development of metastases"
Funding: Italian Association for Cancer Research (AIRC)
Duration: 2015-2018
Project: "Altered lipid metabolism as a stress reaction to the acid tumor microenvironment and a driver of metastasis in osteosarcoma"
Funding: Italian Association for Cancer Research (AIRC)
Duration: 2019-2023
Summary: Activities within this project led to the identification of cellular signaling mechanisms and metabolic rewiring in osteosarcoma cells exposed to microenvironmental acidity. The rewiring of lipid metabolism was investigated from various perspectives, including energy metabolism, signaling related to key lipids upregulated by microenvironmental acidity (sphingolipids), mechanisms of cellular stress response (Unfolded Protein Response), and metabolic coupling between osteosarcoma cells and mesenchymal stromal cells (with a focus on the role of lactate produced by tumor cells in determining metabolic rewiring and lipid synthesis).
Workpackage (WP2) Leader: "The Tumor Microenvironment as a Target for Innovative Therapies in Musculoskeletal Tumors"
Project (5xMille): 2019
Principal Investigator (PI): Prof. Nicola Baldini
Location: Rizzoli Orthopedic Institute, Bologna
Workpackage Leader: "PNRR SAMOTHRACE: Sicilian Micro and Nano Technology Research and Innovation Center"
Principal Investigator (PI) for the Project: "Development of an on-a-chip model of lung metastases of osteosarcoma for screening anticancer drugs"
Funding: Ministry of Health, Italy
Awards and Recognitions:
Sep 2015: Young Investigator Award, International Society for Cancer Metabolism.
Memberships:
International Society of Cancer Metabolism, ISCaM (Board Member, 2020-2021).
International Society of Cancer Metabolism, ISCaM (Treasurer, 2021-present).
