PhD, Full Professor of Human Anatomy, University of Bologna
1985-1990 Studies of Biological Science at the University of Bologna, Italy
1990 State Biological Examination and License
1998 PhD in Biochemistry , Department of Biochemistry "G. Moruzzi" University
1999-2004 Post-doctoral fellow, Department of Biomedical Sciences, section of Human Anatomy Bologna University
2005 Confirmed Researcher, Department of Biomedical Sciences, section of Human Anatomy Bologna University
2012 She holds the National Scientific Enabling Associate Professor in the competitive sector 05H1 BIO/16
2014 Associate Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences, section of Human Anatomy Bologna University
2018 She holds the National Scientific Enabling Full Professor in the competitive sector 05H1 BIO/16
RESEARCH INTEREST
The research of Dr. Irene Faenza is directed mainly to the study of the mechanisms underlying the growth and differentiation in relation to signals generated by the nuclear cycle polyphosphoinositide (PI) and the morphological and functional significance of the topography of this system signal transduction. Her studies focus on nuclear enzymes that metabolize PI and in particular is interested in the study of Phospholipase C inositide dependent. The studies conducted so far by Dr. Irene Faenza are geared to deepen the role in the nucleus polyphosphoinositide and identify specific targets of PLCb1. All these studies have contributed greatly to the identification and determination of the functional role of the nuclear cycle polyphosphoinositide in both differentiation and proliferation processes. Especially it was highlighted the importance of topographical subcellular localization and determination of specific functions of signaling inositide-dependent. For this reason these works have been cited in the most important articles and reviews by the leading experts in the field. Her work covers the following fields: Autonomous nuclear signalling via inositol lipid cycle, is aimed to the identification at nuclear level of the key steps leading to cell growth and differentiation. In particular the main interest is the study in normal and cancer cells of the nuclear localisation and signalling activity of polyphosphoinositides. She has contributed to the discovery of the localisation at the nucleus of this signalling pathway, as internationally recognised, and currently she is furthering the pathophysiological significance of this peculiar location. Through morpho functional studies both in the differentiation and proliferation processes it was identified cyclin D3 as a final target of this nuclear lipid signaling. In recent years Dr Irene Faenza is dedicated to investigations in the field of functional proteomics for the identification of proteins that interact at the nuclear level with PLCβ1 and for the determination of its molecular targets. Recently Dr. Faenza is dedicated to the study and analysis of miRNAs. In mammals, miRNAs are involved in embryonic development, neural and muscle but also in the regulation of hematopoiesis, of 'organogenesis and apoptosis. Dr. Faenza is dedicated to the development of a project which envisaged to identify miRNAs involved in erythroid differentiation following the differentiation of K562 which had been modulated the expression of PLCβ1. In particular since the last years her main interest is the study of the nuclear localisation and signalling activity and the identification of novel downstream effectors of nuclear polyphosphoinositides also through the high-resolution 2-DE-based proteomic analysis. Namely she has furtherd the role of this signalling pathway in the nucleus during myogenic differentiation, giving new insight to its role in myotonic dystrophies. Moreover she has contributed to the study of haemopoietic differentiation, envisaging the pathophysiological significance of nuclear phosphoinositide signalling in MDS. Very recently she has investigated the mechanism of osteogenic differentiation to clarify the molecular events which control this process. AKT regulates many cellular functions, such as growth and proliferation and differentiation. Dr Faenza has contributed to identify the nuclear substrates of AKT that were phosphorylated after ATRA treatment through a proteomics-based analysis by using 2D-electrophoresis/mass spectrometry (MS) in combination with an anti-AKT phospho-substrate antibody. Furthermore research has been conducted to elucidate the nuclear role of the double-strand RNA-dependent protein kinase, PKR, which plays a central role in inflammatory/chronic stress-mediated pathologies such as cancer, diabetes, and neuro/muscular degenerative diseases.
: Impact Factor of papers on peer reviewed journals (JCR-ISI 2007)= 153.64 . Total cites last 10 years
(JCR-ISI 2007)= 725
International meetings attended :
1997 FEBS Special Meet. On Mechanism of Cell Signaling, Amsterdam (Netherlands)
1999 FEBS Advance Course "Targets and Functions of Lipid-derived Messengers" June
11-16, Mario Negri Sud, Italy
2002 ELSO conference Nice, France 29th June to 3rd July 2002
2005 The Gordon Research Conference :"Signal transduction within the nucleus" Santa
Ynez Valley, S.Barbara, CA,USA February 6-11, 2005
2007 The Gordon Research Conference :"Signal transduction within the nucleus" Crown
Plaza Ventura, California march 25-30, 2007
2008 FASEB Sum. Conf."Phospholipid Metabolism: Disease, Signal Transduction and
Membrane Dinamics, New Haven, Connecticut July 20-25, 2008
Funding:
Since 2006 she is recipient of Research funds from University of Bologna as group leader for the project dealing with nuclear signalling.
2001-2005 participates in the National Program Italian MIUR-Cofin and in particular to the following national research projects, selected for funding based on competitive calls providing peer review:
FIRB 2001-2003, Protocol: RBNE0189JJ-002 (18 months as a fellow)
PRIN 2005 Protocol: 2005055737 to 001 (12 months as a researcher)
FIRB program agreements 2010, Protocol RBAP10447J-001 (8 months as a researcher)
FIRB, RN Proteomics, Protocol: RBRN07BMCT-002 (8 months as a researcher)
Institutional and organizational activities
-She is a member since 2005 of the Italian Society of Anatomy and Histology and of the Italian Society of Histochemistry.
-She participated actively in the Congress of the Italian Society of Anatomy and Histochemistry, presenting communications and posters.
-Collaborates organization of the Proteomics Center c / o the laboratory signaling section of the IOR (Istuti Ortopedici Rizzoli) DIBINEM
-Member of the "Pedagogical Technical Commission" of the degree course in Medicine and Surgery
-Coordinator of the Master of Science in Medical Biotechnology of the School of Medicine.
-Commissioner in degree examinations of CDL in Nursing (for certified professional nurses) at the campus of Rimini.
-Member of the Teaching Staff of the PhD in Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences .
Awards:
- "Proteomic-based analysis of nuclear signaling: PLCbeta1 affects the expression of the splicing factor SRp20 in Friend erythroleukemia cells".Bavelloni A, Faenza I. et al. Proteomics. 2006 Nov;6(21):5725-34, This article has been recognized publication of the images on the cover of the Journal.
- eEF1A phosphorylation in the nucleus of insulin-stimulated C2C12 myoblasts: Ser53 is a novel substrate for protein kinase C βI. Piazzi M, Bavelloni A, Faenza I, Blalock W, Urbani A, D'aguanno S, Fiume R, Ramazzotti G, Maraldi Nm, Cocco L (2010). MOLECULAR & CELLULAR PROTEOMICS, vol. 9, p. 2719-2728, ISSN: 1535-9476, This article has been recognized publication of the images on the cover of the Journal.
3. "A role for nuclear phospholipase Cbeta 1 in cell cycle control". J Biol Chem. 2000 Sep 29;275(39):30520-4. Faenza I, et al. It was included in the section of the journal Science STKE (Editors' Choice Transcriptional Regulation by the Nuclear Phosphoinositide Cycle Sci. STKE 2000 (52), tw7. [DOI:10.1126/stke.2000.52.tw7] (3 Oct 2000), as one of the most original and important paper in the field of signal transduction and in particular of the nuclear lipid signaling.
Publications : https://www.unibo.it/sitoweb/irene.faenza2/pubblicazioni
