Research themes
Virology
The research group has expertise in the development and application of techniques for the detection of nucleic acids and viral antigens in clinical biological samples; of molecular biology techniques for the synthesis and production of recombinant viruses; of molecular cloning techniques for the expression of heterologous proteins in prokaryotic and eukaryotic systems; of morphological and functional analysis techniques through confocal microscopy and flow cytometry. The study of parvovirus B19 constitutes a main theme, in the various basic and clinically applied aspects: virus-cell interaction, functional and expression profile analysis of the parvovirus B19 genome; evaluation of the antiviral activity of compounds against parvovirus B19; characterization of different pathogenetic and clinical aspects of parvovirus B19 infection.
Top-ranking research lab on Parvovirus B19: www.expertscape.com/ex/parvovirus+b19%2C+human
Microbiology (Referent: Prof. Giovanna Angela Gentilomi)
With the clinical pipeline of antimicrobial drugs running dry, additional novel drugs and alternative strategies with multiple and/or unique target sites on the pathogens are of paramount need. In this frame, research activity of the Microbiology and Clinical Microbiology group deals with the evaluation of the antimicrobial properties of inorganic, polymeric and composite materials, synthetic and plant-based formulations and the investigation of the mechanisms of action of the biologically active compounds/formulations. Of note, in the current scenario of antimicrobial resistance, strong attention is paid on agents with inhibitory properties on multi-drug resistant pathogens such as the ESKAPE microbes (Enterococcus spp., Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Enterobacter spp.) and on mono- and polymicrobial biofilms.