Developed skills and lines of research
Mauro Piacentini earned a degree in Biological Sciences from the University of Rome La Sapienza in 1976. Since 2000, he has been a Full Professor at the University of Rome Tor Vergata. Since 1998, he has also served as the Director of the Cellular Biology Laboratory at the National Institute for Infectious Diseases “Lazzaro Spallanzani” in Rome. His studies focus on understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying cell death and autophagy.
Specifically, his research has addressed:
- The role of type 2 transglutaminase in cell death (apoptosis) and autophagy under physiological conditions and in the pathogenesis of diseases such as cancer, viral infections, and neurodegenerative diseases.
- The involvement of type 2 transglutaminase in the regulation of mitochondrial functionality and mitophagy.
He has numerous achievements in the scientific field: he is one of the founders of the journals Cell Death and Differentiation (I.F. 2010 = 8.6) and Cell Death & Disease (I.F. 2010 = 6.0), for which he has served as Receiving Editor and Section Editor since 1994. In 2007, he was Guest Editor for Methods in Enzymology, and since 2008, he has been on the Editorial Board of the journal Journal of Biomedicine and Biotechnology (I.F. 2007 = 2.0). Mauro Piacentini has authored over 240 articles in high-impact international journals.
Projects funded by FFC Ricerca as Principal Investigator or as Research Manager
FFC#8/2022
Targeting the STING/Transglutaminase 2-regulated Interferon response as a novel host-direct approach to fight bacterial infections in cystic fibrosis
FFC#15/2020
Targeting the STING/Transglutaminase 2-regulated Interferon response as a novel host-direct approach to fight bacterial infections in Cystic Fibrosis
FFC#10/2018
Dissecting the mechanism of action of the TG2 inhibitor cysteamine on Cystic Fibrosis
FFC#8/2015
Dissecting the role of TG2 in cystic fibrosis pathogenesis: identification of possible novel therapeutic targets
Publications from FFC Research projects
- Diaz-Hidalgo L, Altuntas S, Rossin F, et al. Transglutaminase type 2-dependent selective recruitment of proteins into exosomes under stressful cellular conditions. Biochim Biophys Acta, 2016 Aug;1863(8):2084-92. doi: 10.1016/j.bbamcr.2016.05.005. Epub 2016 May 8.
- Antonioli M, Di Rienzo M, Piacentini M, Fimia GM. Emerging Mechanisms in Initiating and Terminating Autophagy. Trends Biochem Sci, 2017 Jan;42(1):28-41. doi: 10.1016/j.tibs.2016.09.008. Epub 2016 Oct 17.
- Rossin F, Villella VR, D’Eletto M, et al., TG2 regulates the heat-shock response by the post-translational modification of HSF1. EMBO Rep. 2018 Jul;19(7). pii: e45067. doi: 10.15252/embr.201745067. Epub 2018 May 11.
- Luigi Maiuri, Valeria Raia, Mauro Piacentini, et al. Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator (CFTR) and Autophagy: Hereditary Defects in Cystic Fibrosis versus Gluten-Mediated Inhibition in Celiac Disease. Oncotarget 10 (43), 4492-4500
- Speranza Esposito, Valeria Rachela Villella, Eleonora Ferrari, et al. Genistein Antagonizes Gliadin-Induced CFTR Malfunction in Models of Celiac Disease. Aging (Albany NY), 11 (7), 2003-2019 2019 Apr 12
- Valeria R Villella, Speranza Esposito, Eleonora Ferrari, et al. Autophagy Suppresses the Pathogenic Immune Response to Dietary Antigens in Cystic Fibrosis. Cell Death Dis, 10 (4), 258 2019 Mar 15