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Education
I have a background in Medicinal Chemistry, with training and expertise in discovery of new small molecules as potential active compounds. I obtained my M.Sc. in Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Technology in 2013. During the University period, I was a Visiting Master Student for 3 months at Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology - University of Copenhagen, (Denmark) under the supervision of Prof. Bente Frølund. In 2013, I won a postgraduate fellowship at University of Torino for 8 months. Subsequently I was selected as a PhD student in Medicinal Chemistry under the supervision of Prof. Lolli in 2014. Although my main PhD project included the designed and synthesis of hDHODH inhibitors, I was effectively collaborated in many different projects. As part of my PhD experience, I spent two months at University of Milan in order to learn flow chemistry techniques, an innovative technology able to increase the productivity and the sustainability of the classical synthetic procedures. Moreover, I spent 9 months at Faculdade de Farmácia - Universidade de Lisboa where I achieved skills in molecular docking by using software such as Moe, Gold, Pymol. Following the PhD, I carried out 6 years of postdoctoral training period at University of Turin in MedSynth group.

Research at MEDSynth group
I have been working more than ten years in MedSynth group. I am involved in several research projects (see the list below) and collaborate with several Italian and European researchers My research concerns the design, synthesis, characterization and biological applications of new molecules, in particular it focuses on the study of acidic hydroxylated pentatomic heterocyclic systems, and their bioisosteric properties connected to carboxylic and other acidic functions. This approach has been applied to modulate and optimize several lead molecules, in particular it has been used to discover the following new molecules:
·       Design new inhibitors of human dihydroorotate dehydrogenase (DHODH) inhibitors, obtained through modulation of acidic function of brequinar. These molecules are under development as anti-leukemic and anti-viral agents;
·       Design new Glutamic Acid and GABA analogues based on hydroxyazoles
·       Development of new antiviral agents
·       Design new inhibitors of mycobacterium tuberculosis dihydroorotate dehydrogenase (DHODH) inhibitors
·       Design new inhibitors on Uridine monophosphate synthase (UMPS), a potential target for cancer and viral infection
·       Development of new isostere of carboxylic acid based on hydroxyazoles system
·       Design inhibitors of PIN1 based on ATRA, a potential target to block multiple oncogenic signals.

University activity
Currently I’m Assistant Professor in Medicinal Chemistry, in particular I’m laboratory instructor for the courses: “Preparations of products of vegetable origin (PESV)” (Course in Herbal Products), and "Laboratory of phytochemistry and chemical analysis of the active ingredients from plants” (Degree Course in Herbal Products). I’m Co-supervisor of Medicinal Chemistry Master students during their Master Thesis experiments. On November 13, 2020, I co-founded a UniTo academic Spin-Off called Drug Discovery and Clinic (or DDC) s.r.l. (www.ddcpharmaceutical.com). As result of these experiences, I published 25 papers on international peer-review journals and carried out 13 oral presentations at National/International conferences. Publications 25, Citations 378, H-index 12. Oral communications 13, Posters 34.