Alessandro Bellapianta

Experience

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  Università del Salento

  Sept 2016 - Jun 2017

  Internship Trainee

  During my BSc studies I have been part of a research project lead by Dr. Pietro Alifano focused on bacterial biomineralizaton. We obtained samples of submarine speleothems from Grotta Giusti (Monsummano Terme - PT -Italy) which represent an inhospitable environment for most living forms mainly due to the high levels of Calcium and CO2. Nevertheless, life proliferates on the surface of speleothems with a large number of cultivable microorganisms around 10 ^ 5 CFU per cm ^ 2. Bacillus Licheniformis appeared to be the most commonly cultivable bacterium. X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy demonstrated that Bacillus Licheniformis isolated in vitro produced calcite micro-crystals with the same crystallographic properties as those found in speleothem samples, suggesting a major role of this bacterium in the growth and remodeling of underwater speleothems. I have been part of this research team for 6 months and my main duties and responsabilities have been preparation of cultire media, staining, isolation, DNA extraction, carry out assimilation tests for the identification of the bacterium and daily stereomicroscope observation to identify the presence of calcium crystals when plated on urea agar (confirmed by XRD). Visa mindre

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  Università degli Studi di Pavia

  Mar 2018 - Jul 2019

  Internship Trainee

  My MSc studies in Molecular Biology and Genetics expected students to start the internship for the experimental thesis since the enrollment. I chose the Molecular Microbiology lab of Dr. Giovanna RIccardi while being tutored by Dr. Silvia Buroni. The research project has been focused on Burkholderia cenocepacia, an opportunistic pathogen particularly dangerous for cystic fibrosis patients. It can cause a severe decline in CF lung function possibly developing into a life-threatening systemic infection known as cepacia syndrome. When I joined the lab they recently discovered a new compound targeting FtsZ, the key player of cell division in bacteria. In that contest, in order to find new cellular targets to contrast B. cenocepacia infections, we focused our attention on the in – depth understanding of the division machinery. Bacterial cells use a membrane-attached ring of proteins to mark and guide formation of a division septum at midcell that forms a wall separating the two daughter cells and allows cells to divide. In E. coli, the early step of septum formation implies the association of soluble FtsZ polymers with the cytoplasmic membrane. ZipA, together with FtsA, provides membrane tethering to FtsZ, forming a dynamic proto - ring that serves as an assembly scaffold for the remaining elements of the divisome. The work therefore have been to characterize B. cenocepacia ZipA and to elucidate its interaction with FtsZ. A sedimentation assay was set up to evaluate their interaction during FtsZ polymerization. The results obtained have provided insights into the mode of interaction of proto-ring elements and contribute to the completion of our understanding of the initial events of bacterial division. My duties and responsabilities have been preparation of antibiotics solutions and culture media, cloning, SDS-PAGE, PCR and trasformation; protein expression and purification through gel filtration chromatography and HPLC. Visa mindre

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  Johannes Kepler Universität Linz

  Jan 2021 - now

  PhD Student in Ophthalmology and Optometry

  Job Duties:- Take part in studying the potential of human retinal organoids as in vitro models of retinal dystrophy to examine organic retinal prosthesis efficiency- The applied methods include: stem cell culture and differentiation, re-programming human fibroblasts into induced pluripotent stem cells, various cellular and molecular biology techniques (e.g. Immunocytochemistry, qRT-PCR, Flow Cytometry, Western Blot, etc.)-Take part in establishing and developing new techniques and strategies-Close collaboration with medical professionals at the Department of Ophthalmology and Optometry and scientists at the Center for Medical Research Visa mindre

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  Società Italiana Brevetti S.p.A.

  Mar 2021 - Apr 2021

  Patent Attorney Trainee

  Responsibilities:- Discuss inventions and processes with inventors or manufacturers and ascertain whether they're likely to succeed in being granted patents- Analyse scientific or technical documents, including previously granted patents, to assess whether an invention is new and innovative- Write detailed technical descriptions of inventions in precise legal terms (patent drafts)- Suggest modifications or extensions to the definition of the invention- Apply for patents from the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) and the European Patent Office (EPO)- Prepare responses to reports from patent examiners Visa mindre