Stefano Del Duca
Current Position
Full Professor of Botany, School of Science, University of Bologna
Affiliation
Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences (BiGeA),
University of Bologna
Via Irnerio 42, 40126 Bologna, Italy
Tel: ++39 051 209 1283
Fax: ++39 051 242576
Email: stefano.delduca@unibo.it
Place of Birth
Bologna, Italy
Education
M.Sc. in Biological Sciences, cum laude, 16 July 1987
PhD in Cell Biology and Physiology, University of Bologna
Metric Overview (Scopus, 20/10/2025)
- 121 documents
- 2742 citations from 1600 documents
- h-index: 32
Scopus Author Profile: https://www.scopus.com/authid/detail.uri?authorId=6603469998
University webpage: https://www.unibo.it/sitoweb/stefano.delduca
ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Stefano_Duca
Short Biography
After graduating in Biology in 1987, he obtained a PhD in Cell Biology and Physiology at the University of Bologna.
In 1995 he was awarded a one-year fellowship from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, spent at Chiba University (Japan).
He subsequently carried out research periods in Nottingham (UK) in 2001, 2002 and 2006; at the Fraunhofer Institute in Schmallenberg (Germany, 2003); and in Lleida (Spain, 2005), for a total of 7 months.
He became Researcher at the Faculty of Science (MFN) of the University of Bologna in 1997, carrying out his activities within the former Department of Biology.
Since 2008 he has been Full Professor of Botany at the same Faculty, now within the Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences (BiGeA).
He teaches courses in the Degree Programmes in Biology (first and second cycle) at the School of Science. In the past he also taught in the Faculty of Pharmacy (Pharmacy and CTF programmes).
Teaching details: https://www.unibo.it/sitoweb/stefano.delduca/didattica
He served as Chair of the BSc Programme in Biological Sciences (2013–2019).
Since 2016 he has been the scientific coordinator of the National Plan for Scientific Degrees (PLS) in Biology and Biotechnology at the University of Bologna.
He has been a member of the Department Committees of the former Department of Biology for nine years and, since 2018, of the BiGeA Department Committee.
He served as member of the PhD Boards in Biodiversity and Evolution and Earth, Life and Environmental Sciences (2012–2016).
He has participated in international ESF and COST research projects, national projects (FIRB, PRIN), and University of Bologna strategic and targeted research programs. He was coordinator of a Young Research Project and promoted an Italy–UK bilateral cooperation project.
Recent Research Projects
- RFO funding manager, University of Bologna (2008–2022)
- 2023: PI of PRIN PNRR 22 – HEATSTOP (“Understanding the impact of heat stress on pollen–pistil communication in crops”). Approved August 2023.
- 2023: PRIN 2022 “Deciphering the effects of global warming on the reproductive biology of Mediterranean mandarins”, PI for the Bologna research unit. Approved July 2023.
- 2022: PNRR, CN-Agritech – Task leader 1.2.3, Spoke 1, University of Bologna.
- 2021: Scientific coordinator of the MIPAAF project “Enhancement of sustainable beekeeping resilient to climate change”.
- 2020: Participant in PSR VALOFRUIT (“Characterization and enhancement of local fruit biodiversity and evaluation of innovative apple cultivars for mountain agriculture”), funded by Emilia–Romagna Region.
- 2019: Italian PI of the Italy–Poland bilateral project “Functional features of transglutaminases in the pathobiology of Phytophthora infestans”, funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
- PRIN 2015: “Study of determinants of self-incompatibility in fruit trees (ISIDE)”.
- ATENA programme (started 2011; three-year project): “New technological approaches to improve shelf-life and service content of key products of the Mediterranean diet”, coordinated by Barilla Spa, funded by the Ministry of Economic Development.
- “My Darling Clementine” project (POR-FESR 2007–2013): Scientific coordinator of the Research Unit for the development of innovative, hypoallergenic citrus-based products (three-year project, started 2010).
- EU project RELIEF (Coordinator of proposal). Despite exceeding all evaluation thresholds, it was not funded.
- PRIN 2007: “Studies on the molecular determinants of floral incompatibility and their interaction mechanisms during fertilization”.
Research Interests
His scientific research focuses on:
- plant growth through cell division (cell cycle)
- pollen tube apical growth
- pollen–pistil interactions
- cell differentiation, including programmed cell death and in vitro morphogenesis
- salt stress in unicellular green algae
In these systems, he has extensively studied protein post-translational modification by polyamines.
He identified transglutaminase in plants for the first time and investigated its role in cytoplasmic and chloroplast structural organization.
In recent years, his research has increasingly focused on plant reproductive biology, with particular attention to:
- pollen biology, including atmospheric pollen and pollen-related allergies
- plant responses to abiotic and biotic stresses
Publications
He has published 121 scientific papers, mostly in international peer-reviewed journals, including several reviews on polyamines, transglutaminases, pollen tube growth, and pollen sensitization.
Scopus profile: https://www.scopus.com/authid/detail.uri?authorId=6603469998
He serves as reviewer for several international journals, has organized symposia and international conferences, and has been invited as speaker in numerous scientific meetings.
Invited Speaker (selected)
- 2002 – 7th International Conference on Transglutaminase and Protein Crosslinking, Ferrara
- 2005 – 8th International Conference on Protein Crosslinking and Transglutaminase, Lübeck (Germany)
- 2005 – XXXI National Congress of the Italian Society of Histochemistry, Pisa
- 2007 – 9th International Conference on Transglutaminases and Protein Crosslinking, Marrakech (Morocco)
- 2009 – “Biogenic amines: biochemical, physiological and clinical aspects”, Bertinoro (Forlì)
- 2009 – 55th GEI Meeting, Certosa di Pontignano, Siena
- 2010 – 2nd International Conference on Polyamines and Analogs in Cancer and Other Diseases, Tivoli (Rome)
- 2011 – Workshop “Floral biology and self-incompatibility in fruit species”, San Michele all’Adige
- 2011 – International Congress “Biogenic Amines”, Alberè di Tenna (Trento)
- 2012 – International Congress on Polyamines, Istanbul
- 2013 – 2nd International APLE–APLF Congress, Madrid
- 2014 – Italian Botanical Society, International Plant Science Conference, Florence
- 2015 – MedPalyno Symposium, Rome
- 2019 – MACFRUIT 2019
- 2022 – Italian Botanical Society, International Plant Science Conference, Bologna
Editorial Roles
- Associate Editor, Frontiers in Plant Science (since 2022)
- Guest Editor, Special Issue “Regulation of Pollen Tube Growth Vol. II”, Frontiers in Plant Science (2022)
- Guest Editor, Special Issue “Pollen–Pistil Interaction”, IJMS (2021)
- Guest Editor, Special Issue “Regulation of Pollen Tube Growth”, Frontiers in Plant Science (2020)
- Guest Editor, Special Issue “Pollen Tube and Reproduction”, IJMS (2018)
