Curriculum Vitae et Studiorum di Andrea Luchetti
Born in Rome the 20th May 1976.
Education
20/04/2007 PhD in Biodiversity and Evolution, University of Bologna. Thesis title: “Evolution of repetitive DNA in model arthropods” (Supervisor: Prof. B. Mantovani).
13/3/2002. Master degree in Biological Sciences at University of Bologna, with Thesis on "Molecular characterisation of Bag320 satellite DNA in hybrid unisexual insects of the genus Bacillus (Insecta Phasmatodea)" (Supervisors: Prof. V. Scali, Prof. B. Mantovani).
Research Experience
January 2019 - present. Associate Professor of Zoology, Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna.
January 2016 - January 2019. Senior Researcher (RTDb), Lab. of Molecular Zoology, Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna.
November 2012 – January 2016. Junior Researcher (RTDa), Lab. of Molecular Zoology, Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna.
November 2009 – October 2012. Research fellowship, Lab. of Molecular Zoology, Department of Evolutionary and Experimental Biology, University of Bologna
October 2007 – October 2009. Post-doc position, Lab. of Molecular Zoology, Department of Evolutionary and Experimental Biology, University of Bologna
January 2004 – December 2006. PhD student in the Biodiversity and Evolution program, Lab. of Molecular Zoology, Department of Evolutionary and Experimental Biology, University of Bologna, with Thesis on "Evolution of repetitive DNA in model arthropods".
April – December 2003. Scholarship working on "Microsatellites in Branchiopods".
July – December 2002. Scholarship working on "Molecular variability trends of satellite DNA families in arthropods with non-canonical reproductive modes".
April – June 2002. Graduate student at Biochemical and Molecular Systematic Lab, Department of Evolutionary and Experimental Biology, University of Bologna.
February 2001 – February 2002. Degree internship at Biochemical and Molecular Systematic Lab, Department of Evolutionary and Experimental Biology, University of Bologna, working on molecular characterization of Bag320 satellite DNA in unisexual hybrids of Bacillus stick insects (Phasmida).
Present teaching activities
A.A. 2015/2016 - present. Professor of "Molecular Phylogenetics" (64 hours) Master Degree in Bioinformatics, University of Bologna.
A.A. 2019/2020 - present, Professor of "Evolution and Phylogeny - Lab of Phylogenetics" (module 2 - 64 hours) Master Degree Courses in Biodiversity and Evolution, University of Bologna.
A.A. 2018-2019 – present. Professor of “Animal diversity and distribution in a changing climate” (56 hours), Master Degree in Sciences and Management of Nature, University of Bologna.
A.Y. 2012/2013 – present. Professor of “Statistics” for the PhD programs in “Biodiversity and Evolution” (27° – 29° cycle), and “Sciences of Earth, Life and Environment” (30° – 36° cycle), University of Bologna.
Student supervisor
I am supervisor of two PhD students of the “Sciences of Earth, Life and Environment” and “FishMed” programs. Moreover, I am supervisor or co-supervisor of several Master and Bachelor Degree students.
Research activity
My main research interest concerns the study of molecular phylogenetics and phylogenomics, and evolutionary genomics in arthropods (crustaceans and insects) and in molluscs (mainly bivalves). More in particular, my research lines aim to the understanding of the evolution of animal biodiversity and systematics (at species level or above), of the evolution of characters (morphological and molecular) that characterize the different animal taxa, and to the evolution of genomes. Moreover, I am also interested in the reproductive biology and its effects on the genome evolution, with special emphasis on the evolutionary dynamics of transposable elements. In these research lines I have several collaborations with national and international research groups.
At the present, my main research projects concern:
- Biodiversity genomics and molecular phylogenetics in insects (mainly termites, stick insects and ants).
- Evolutionary genomics in branchiopod crustaceans, with emphasis on the morphological stasis, and in bivalve molluscs.
- Evolution of genomes in parthenogenetic arthropods.
I am author or co-author of 86 scientific papers on both Italian and international peer-reviewed journals, 81 of them on journals with impact factor, and one book chapter. Bibliometric data on Scopus database, obtained using the ORCID 0000-0002-2986-721X, concerning the 71 papers present in the database at 15/01/2024, are: total citations=1176; h-index=16. I also presented more than 70 communications and/or posters at national and international Congresses.
Reviewer activity
I was a Reviewer of Research Grants for the Croatian Science Foundation (HRZZ), for the Czec Science Foundation and for the European Science Foundation (ESF). Moreover, I acted as Reviewer for many scientific journals such as, for example: “Molecular Biology and Evolution”, “Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution”, “Molecular Genetics and Genomics”, "Insectes Sociaux", "Journal of Biogeography", “Molecular Ecology”, “BMC Genomics”, “Frontiers in Genetics”, “BMC Evolutionary Biology”, “Proceedings of the Royal Society - Series B”, “PeerJ”, “Systematic Entomology”.
In addition, I am currently member of the Editorial Board of the journals “Scientific Reports” and "BMC Zoology"; I was guest editor of two special issues of “International Journal of Molecular Sciences” (Transposable Elements) and “Life” (Molecular Phylogenetics and Mitochondrial Evolution).
Scientific Societies Membership
- A.I.S.A.S.P. – Italian Section of I.U.S.S.I (International Union for the Study of Social Insects) (I am currently council member since September 2022; I have been society's threasurer and president in the past Councils).
- S.I.B.E.-I.S.E.B. Italian Society of Evolutionary Biology (I am currently Councilor since September 2019)
- E.S.E.B. European Society for Evolutionary Biology
- S.M.B.E. Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution
- Academy of Sciences of Bologna Institute (Resident Corresponding Academicians).
