Born in Imola (BO) on 28/11/1972, graduated in Physics in
1995/96 with full votes.
After studying the main themes of modern
theoretical physics during university, I became interested in
modeling biophysical topics since my PhD in Physics (awarded in
2001). My main research interests are modeling of complex
biological functions (Immune System, Genome, Nervous System) with
approaches based on network theory and the study of the effects of
electromagnetic fields (EMF) on cells, in particular the
interaction of these fields with the cell membrane by ion channel
(stochastic models), and the study of synergistic effects of EMF
with cell defense mechanisms, such as Heat Shock Response (changes
in the kinetics of cellular response). I deal with the theoretical
study and the development of novel algorithms in the field of
neural networks and "hybrid" expert systems for the exploratory
analysis of data (time-series analysis, classification, feature
extraction), for applications in the biomedical field techniques of
signal analysis (classification of patterns of gene activity
obtained experimentally through "Microarray Hybridization"
technique, reconstruction of the network of gene-gene interaction
starting from time series of gene expression obtained
experimentally). Another of my research topics is the study of the
electrical activity of cells using the patch clamp technique for
biomedical applications (cell response to mechanical shock) or pure
research (cell electrical activity and aging).
I worked on several national projects (various PRIN 2005-2007)
and international (European REFLEX project, RAMP) on the study of
electromagnetic fields and their effect on biological tissue, with
numerous collaborations (Brown University, USA, Unilever UK, RZPD
Heidelberg D University of Parma, Bologna University, Rizzoli
Orthopaedic Institute, EU projects PROTHETS, T-CIA, GEHA, MARKAGE,
Policlinico S. Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, National Institute of
Health-Rome, Milan CNR-ITB) on the study of gene expression in
relation to disease, aging or experimental treatments (including
EMF). I am a member of INBB, the Interdepartmental Centre "L.
Galvani "(CIG) for studies on biocomplexity (University of Bologna)
and INFN, participating in the initiative for the study of
interactions between low-dose ionizing radiations and cells (SHEILA
and EXCALIBUR projects). In 2005 I won the prize "Bologna Start
Cup", with a business project on the application of an
interdisciplinary sensor of volatile substances ("electronic nose")
in an industrial environment.
Since 2014 I am Associate Professor
at the Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Bologna.
Recently awarded EU projects
2011- FibeBiotics Study the
bioactive (health) function of
polysaccharides and
generate knowledge that support
health claims
2012 - MIMOmics - development of an integrated processing
and analysis pipeline for high-throughput omics data;
2012 - NGS-PTL - Next-generation
sequencing for leukemia; 2014 - COMPARE COllaborative Management Platform for detection and Analyses of (Re-)emerging and foodborne outbreaks in Europe; 2017 - IMI-2 HARMONY Healthcare Alliance for Resourceful Medicines Offensive against Neoplasms in HematologY;
