Education
2002: PhD Degree in Oncology, University of Bologna
2000: Italian Board of Biology certification
1998: Laurea in Scienze Biologiche - indirizzo Biomolecolare, Università degli Studi di Bologna
Positions and Academic career
2022: Senior Assistant Professor in Biotechnology and Methods in Laboratory Medicine (MED/46) at the Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine - DIMES, University of Bologna
2019-2021: Senior Assistant Professor in Histology (BIO/17) at the Department of Translational Medicine, University of Ferrara
2018-2019: National Scientific Licence as Associate Professor in six fields: 06/D3 - Hematology, Oncology and Rheumatology; 06/N1 - Medical Technologies and Healthcare profession sciences; 06/G1 - General and Specialty Pediatrics and Neuropsychiatry; 05/H2 – Histology; 05/E3 - Clinical Molecular Biology and Biochemistry; 06/A2 - General and Clinical Pathology
2016-2019: Specialist in Massively parallel sequencing and microarray and Supervisor at the “Giorgio Prodi” Cancer Research Center Laboratory, University of Bologna.
2008-2019 Staff scientist, “Giorgio Prodi” Cancer Research Center Laboratory, University of Bologna, Italy
2007-2008: Senior Research fellow in Pediatrics, University of Bologna, Italy
2004-2008: Professor with a temporary appointment of “Microarray Technology”, Cellular and Molecular Biotechnology course, University of Bologna, Italy.
2002-2004 Post-doc Research fellowship from FIRC (Italian Foundation for Cancer Research), Italy
1999-2001: PhD student in Oncology – Department of Experimental Pathology, University of Bologna
Faculty Appointments and Teaching activity
Professor of “Organ and Tissue Regeneration Mechanisms” – Master’s degree in biotechnology for Translational Medicine – University of Ferrara, 2021/22.
Professor of “Histology” – Bachelor’s Degree in Medical Biotechnology per il Corso di Laurea Triennale di Biotecnologie Mediche – University of Ferrara, 2020/21 - 2021/22.
Member of the Academic Board of the Ph.D program in Advanced Therapies and Experimental Pharmacology, University of Ferrara, 2020-2022.
Co-Supervisor in the Ph.D. program in Oncology, Hematology and Pathology, University of Bologna, 2020-2022.
Guest lecturer at Professional Master Programmes and advanced courses at the University of Bologna, 2004 – 2021.
Supervisor of degrees theses in the courses of Medicine and Surgery, Biological Sciences, Health Biology, Medical Biotechnology, Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Biodiversity and Evolution, Cellular and molecular biotechnology at the University of Bologna and Ferrara.
Research activity
My research activity has been mainly developed in the field of genetic and genomic characterization of cancer. I have significant experience in the field of omics technologies, both microarray and next generation sequencing. I contributed to the creation of the Affymetrix microarray facility (2006) and massively parallel sequencing facility (2011) at the Giorgio Prodi Cancer Research Center Laboratory of the University of Bologna.
The most important part of my research efforts has been devoted to the genomic and transcriptomic analysis of cancer, with particular focus on rare tumors and sarcomas. I have also been involved in genomic studies on pediatric leukemias and preclinical models of human malignancies.
During my postgraduate studies, as a Ph.D. fellow in Oncology, I focused on the growth factor and cytokine circuits active in human rhabdomyosarcomas. Then as a postdoctoral fellow of the Italian Foundation for Cancer Research (FIRC), I studied the gene expression profiles associated to the immunoprevention and immune escape of mammary carcinoma in a Her2/neu-transgenic mouse model, and as a senior postdoc of the Department of Pediatrics I was involved in the studies on the molecular profiles of drug response and resistance in pediatric leukemias.
After my postdoc, my research interests shifted to the study of the molecular status and genomic profile of human sarcomas, with a particular focus on Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors. This line of research allowed to identify for the first time SDHA mutations as the oncogenic driver event of a major part of KIT/PDGFRA-wild type GIST and defined their specific genomic and transcriptomic profiles, clinical course and molecular marker expression. I have been working also on the study of the genetic and molecular make-up of KIT/PDGFRA/SDH/RAS-pathway negative GIST, defining for the first time its genomic heterogeneity coupled to a shared gene expression profile and driver oncogenic event.
The work on transcriptomic and molecular characterization of human sarcomas has been developed in my past and current position also on different sarcoma models, with the identification of BCOR Internal Tandem Duplication in Clear Cell sarcoma of the Kidney, of 22q loss as the relevant molecular event in fibrosarcomatous evolution in DFSP, and of the specific immune signature expression of GIST, that is predictive of immunotherapy response.
Current fundings as Principal Investigator derive from the Sarcoma Foundation of America, Washington DC, USA, with the project “Hippo pathway targeting in uterine leiomyosarcoma”, from the University of Bologna - Call for Alternative methods to animal testing , with the project "Genome-editing of TP53 in induced Pluripotent Stem cells (iPSC) as a new preclinical model of sarcoma", and from the University of Ferrara - Research Incentive Fund, with the project "Development of targeted treatments for BCOR-driven tumors". From 2005 up to today I have been co-investigator in projects financed by AIRC, MIUR, Carisbo Foundation, S. Orsola Foundation, Del Monte Foundation, Emilia Romagna Region.
Research activity is documented by the publication of 153 manuscripts in international peer-reviewed scientific journals, the participation as an invited or selected speaker in national and international meetings and symposia, and a Scopus H-index of 36.
Awards and Scientific Advisory Board Membership
2017-2018: Member of the National Study Group “Cellular and Molecular Biology” of the Italian Association of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology (AIEOP)
2014- Member of the Integrated Research Team “AlmaSequencing”, University of Bologna, Italy.
2008-2018: Organizing Committee of: 5th “AIEOP in Lab” Workshop; “Pancreatic Cancer: New challenges, new hopes”; “International symposium on: The Impact of Genomic Deep Sequencing on Paediatric Research and Clinical Practice”; “New Drugs in Pediatric Oncology”.
2008- Member of the GIST Study Group, Bologna, Italy
2006: Award of the Research Association in Food and Nutrition (ARNA) during the 1st ARNA National Congress
