Research activities focus on bioconjugation chemistry applied to bio-nanostructured systems.
One of the main research lines concerns the design and synthesis of hybrid systems based on proteins and carbon-based nanomaterials (fullerenes, carbon nanotubes, graphene) or highly hydrophobic molecular species, through the formation of supramolecular adducts.
The synthesis of nano-hybrids is also carried out through the covalent modification of proteins. Particular attention is devoted to conjugation with imaging agents, targeting moieties and phototheranostic molecules, in order to obtain stable and functional systems in biological environments.
An additional research line is dedicated to the bioconjugation of engineered bacteriophages, which are employed as scaffolds for the construction of functional nanostructures and as vectors for the targeted delivery of therapeutic and diagnostic agents, with applications in oncology and antimicrobial treatments.
Overall, the research activity is oriented toward the development of phototheranostic platforms based on bio-nanostructured systems, in which photo-, sono-, or chemo-induced activation enables the integration of diagnostic and therapeutic functions in biomedical applications.
