Irene Neri

Research fellow

Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences

Teaching tutor

Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences

Academic discipline: BIO/16 Human Anatomy

Research

Keywords: biotechnology oncology human anatomy glioma tumor microenvironment laser microdissection NGS sequencing

Gliomas: The research focuses on characterizing and analyzing the interactions between glioma tumor cells and their microenvironment. Specifically, the study is centered on the preliminary validation of a new protocol for extracting the secretome directly from patient tumor tissue.

Severe Gastrointestinal Dysmotility: This research focused on studying the molecular mechanisms underlying severe gastrointestinal dysmotility, including both congenital forms (Mitochondrial Neurogastrointestinal Encephalomyopathy – MNGIE) and idiopathic forms such as Chronic Intestinal Pseudo-obstruction (CIPO) and Enteric Dysmotility (ED). The research specifically involved the morphological analysis of patient intestinal samples, with a focus on vascular aspects. Additionally, the study developed in vitro models to investigate angiogenesis in the absence of thymidine phosphorylase (the enzyme whose mutation is the root cause of the pathological process in MNGIE) and to examine the effects of thymidine phosphorylase deficiency on the anatomy and function of enteric neurons.