ORCID ID: 0009-0007-2387-1035
Curriculum: Experimental Neuroscience
Tutor: Professor Gabriella Nicolini
Supervisor: Prof. Valentina Carozzi and Prof. Arianna Scuteri
Workplace: Experimental Neurology Unit, School of Medicine and Surgery, University of Milano-Bicocca
I was born in Pavia, where I completed my Bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences at the University of Pavia. My final dissertation was based on the “Characterization of the knockout mouse model for the Islet Brain 2 (IB2) gene”.
I then moved to Trieste where I graduated in March of 2024 from the international master’s degree in Neuroscience at the University of Trieste, with the dissertation “Evaluation of Histone Deacetylase 6 (HDAC6) inhibitors as possible neuroprotectors against peripheral neurotoxicity induced by Paclitaxel”. To graduate, I followed a yearlong internship at the University of Milano Bicocca, in the Experimental Neurology Unit (ENU) lab, after which I was given an internship, working as part of the in vitro group, studying mechanisms of neurotoxic damage induced by antineoplastic agents.
Currently, I am a PhD student in Neuroscience at the University of Milano Bicocca, working on a project titled “SARM1 inhibition as a neuroprotective strategy in CIPN: in vitro and in vivo models”.
PhD research project
SARM1 inhibition as a neuroprotective strategy in CIPN: in vitro and in vivo models
Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) is a common and debilitating side effect of many antineoplastic agents, affecting up to 70% of patients and significantly compromising their quality of life and treatment outcomes. Despite its prevalence, effective preventive or therapeutic strategies are lacking, largely due to incomplete understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying CIPN. Recent studies have identified the NMNAT2/SARM1 axis as a critical regulator of axonal degeneration, with SARM1 activation leading to NAD⁺ depletion and axonal loss. Building on previous findings that HDAC6 inhibition protects against Paclitaxel-induced neurotoxicity—potentially via modulation of SARM1 activity—this project aims to investigate SARM1 inhibition as a generalizable neuroprotective strategy in CIPN. Using both in vitro and in vivo models, the research will assess whether pharmacological SARM1 inhibitors can prevent neuropathic damage induced by chemotherapies with distinct mechanisms of action, and whether this protection is independent of NMNAT2. Neuroprotection will be evaluated through assays of neuronal viability, neurite integrity, behavioral and neurophysiological tests, morphometric and molecular analyses of peripheral nerves, and SARM1 activity assays. This work seeks to validate SARM1 as a therapeutic target in CIPN and to elucidate its broader role in axonal degeneration, paving the way for new neuroprotective interventions in cancer therapy.