The research activities are related to Environmental and Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology, in relation to the development and optimization of bioremediation processes for environmental matrices contaminated with organic pollutants, the biodegradation of biopolymers in open environments, the enzymatic degradation and the development of enzymatic processes for the recycling and upcycling of biopolymers, the treatment and valorisation of agro-food by-products and surplus into biobased chemicals.
The ongoing projects are related to:
- Development and optimization of bioremediation processes for the decontamination of soils and groundwaters polluted by complex pollutant mixtures, through the selection and assembly of microbial communities with complementary degradation abilities and their tailored biostimulation guided by microbiomes modeling (Horizon Europe project NYMPHE);
- Selection and characterization of microorganisms and microbial communities able to degrade pharmaceutical micropollutants and their exploitation in the decontamination of waters to be employed in aquifer recharge (Horizon Europe project MAR2PROTECT);
- Studies on the effects of amendments on soil microbiomes (Horizon Europe project TRIBIOME);
- Development of enzymatic processes for the recycling and upcycling of biopolymers (H2020 project PRESERVE);
- Colonization and microbial biodegradation of biopolyesters in the marine environment (PNRR Spoke 2);
- Characterization of the microbial communities involved in biotechnological processes of environmental and industrial interest.
