Phd in PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES

email: deborah.quaglio@uniroma1.it
phone: 0766536202
building: CU032 - terzo piano
room: 0

Dr. Deborah Quaglio has been involved in research activities covering several challenging and multidisciplinary projects. Her primary research interest is centered on organic chemistry, with a particular focus on:
• Synthesis of artificial receptors endowed with suitable chemical and physical properties. In the field of supramolecular chemistry, Dr. Quaglio research interest is dedicated to the synthesis of artificial receptors of the calixarene family (namely resorcarenes): i) She designed resorc[4]arene octamethyl ethers with nitrosonium-capturing properties, used in liquid chromatography to separate polar natural products and fullerenes; ii) she designed and synthesizing resorc[4]arene ω-undecenyl esters for use in olefin metathesis reactions to incorporate the macrocycles into polymeric architectures.; iii) as an extension of the complexation studies, she developed new resorc[4]arene-based systems as artificial linkers for enzymes and antibodies immobilization; iv) she explored the ability of resorc[4]arenes to self-assemble in polar solutions, to form supramolecular aggregates, and to promote water-solubility of an isoflavone endowed with anti-cancer activity.
• Design and synthesis of positively charged linkers for bioconjugate-drug development. Encapsulation of therapeutic oligonucleotides into ferritin nanocages is challenging due to the negatively charged residues in the ferritin protein's inner cavity. Dr. Quaglio developed low-cost procedures for synthesizing rigid-rod-like amines that can be chemoselectively conjugated to engineered cysteine residues inside the protein cavity.
• Isolation, structural elucidation and synthesis of bioactive natural products and their derivatives. She was involved in the construction, also virtually, of a unique high-diversity collection of natural products, enlarged with their semi-synthetic and synthetic derivatives up to around 2000 components. She worked on identifying bioactive natural products for targeted therapy against hyper-activated signaling pathways in cancer stem cells and enzymes responsible for antibiotic resistance in Gram-negative bacteria. Using computer-aided methods, several lead compounds were developed and patented as anticancer agents and antibiotic adjuvants.