Abstract

Short CV

After a master degree in biology and a PhD in molecular and cellular biology and pathology, at SZN, I went out of Italy to do a two years and half post-doc in medical field. Once back in Italy, in Naples, I did another post-doc still in medical field before to finally be back again to SZN, where I completely change my area of expertise committing myself to blu (marine)-biotech. This field is exiting due to the amazing  presence of thousands of living microorganisms, in just a little ocean drop, with many diverse forms and metabolisms that can be useful by a biotechnological point of view. Indeed, some microalgae called diatoms, living also in our seas, are able to produce molecules with pharmacological and nutraceutical activity.
My project objective is the study of the genomic and proteomic content of selected diatoms, based on their ability to pharmacologically interfere on cells from other organisms. Using bioinformatics and molecular and cellular biological methods, the study try to understand which genes are involved in the physiology and metabolism of such microalgae and the pathways responsible for the synthesis of bioactive metabolites.