Phd in MOLECULAR DESIGN AND CHARACTERIZATION FOR THE
PROMOTION OF HEALTH AND WELL-BEING: FROM DRUG TO FOOD

email: federica.rinaldi@uniroma1.it
phone: 06 4100972

Curriculum Vitae – Prof. Federica Rinaldi
Curriculum Vitae of Scientific and Teaching Activity

Place: Rome
Date: November 2025

Part I – General Information
Full Name: Federica Rinaldi
Languages Spoken: Italian (mother tongue), English
Current Position: Professor of Pharmaceutical Technologies, Department of Drug Chemistry and Technologies, Sapienza University of Rome
Scientific-Disciplinary Sector: CHIM/09 – CHEM/08A

Part II – Education
• 2008 – Degree in Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Technologies
Sapienza University of Rome, Faculty of Pharmacy
Experimental thesis: Characterization studies of pH-sensitive vesicles by new derivatives surfactants. Supervisor: Prof. Eleonora Santucci
• 2009 – Licensure to practice as Pharmacist
• 2012 – PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences
Sapienza University of Rome, Department of Drug Chemistry and Technologies, Faculty of Pharmacy
Thesis: Novel targeting strategies: vesicles by “classical” and synthetic surfactants. Supervisor: Prof. Maria Carafa

Part III – Academic Appointments
• 2020 – 2029: National Scientific Qualification (ASN) as Associate Professor – Sector 03/D2 Technology, Socioeconomics and Regulation of Medicinal Products, SSD CHIM/09
• 2021 – 2024: Fixed-term researcher Type B (RTDB) – Sapienza University of Rome
• Since 2024: Professor of Pharmaceutical Technologies – Sapienza University of Rome
• Since 2025: Member of the PhD Board of the PhD Programme in Molecular Design and Characterisation for the Promotion of Health and Well-being: from Drug to Food, Department of Drug Chemistry and Technologies, Sapienza University of Rome

Part IV – Teaching Experience
• From 2025 to present – Sapienza University of Rome
Course: “Laboratory Exercises in Nanotechnologies”
Degree Programme: Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Technology (CTF)
• From 2025 to present – Sapienza University of Rome
Course: “Drug Delivery and Targeting”
Degree Programme: Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Technology (CTF)
• From 2025 to present – Sapienza University of Rome
Role: Member of the PhD Board in the programme “Molecular Design and Characterisation for the Promotion of Health and Well-being: from Drug to Food” (Department of Drug Chemistry and Technologies)
• From 2025 to present – Sapienza University of Rome
Course: “Laboratory and Chemical-Pharmaceutical Activities”
Degree Programme: Pharmaceutical Biotechnology
• 2024 – Sapienza University of Rome
Lecture: “Antimicrobial essential oil formulations: design, preparation and characterization.” Second Training School “Eco-friendly synthesis of targeted antimicrobial peptides and small molecules”
• From 2024 to present – Sapienza University of Rome
Course: “Nanosystems for Diagnostics and Pharmaceutical Technology I & II”
Degree Programme: Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Technology (CTF)
• From 2024 to present – Sapienza University of Rome
Course: “Technological and Regulatory Aspects of Biotechnological Medicines and Biosimilars”
Degree Programme: Pharmacy
• From 2021 to present – Sapienza University of Rome
Course: “Traceability & Documentation of Preparation Processes of Medicinal Products”
Programme: Specialisation School in Hospital Pharmacy (SSFO)
• From 2021 to present – Sapienza University of Rome
Course: “Industrial Manufacture of Medicinal Products”
Degree Programme: Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Technology (CTF)
• From 2021 to present – Sapienza University of Rome
Course: “Pharmaceutical Legislation”
Degree Programme: Pharmaceutical Biotechnology
• From 2018 to present – University of Rome “Tor Vergata”
Course: “Everyday Pharmacy / Italian Legislation”
Degree Programme: Pharmacy
• 2017-2018 – Sapienza University of Rome
Seminars for the PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences, Department of Drug Chemistry and Technologies: “Niosomes: the State of the Art” and “Soft nanocarriers: a versatile strategy for brain delivery”
• 2014-2017 – Sapienza University of Rome
Course: “Nanoemulsions”
Programme: Specialisation School in Hospital Pharmacy (SSFO)
• From 2012 to present – Sapienza University of Rome
Activity: Coordinator of laboratory practice for students of “Technology, Socioeconomics & Pharmaceutical Legislation I” and “II” for the Pharmacy degree
• From 2012 to present – Sapienza University of Rome
Role: Member of the Exam Commission for “Technology, Socioeconomics & Pharmaceutical Legislation I”
• From 2015 to present – Sapienza University of Rome
Role: Member of the Exam Commission for “Technology, Socioeconomics & Pharmaceutical Legislation II”

Part V – Memberships in Scientific Societies & Awards
• Since 2012 – Member of the Italian Association of Lecturers and Researchers in Pharmaceutical Technology & Legislation (ADRITELF/SITELF)
• Since 2012 – Member of the Italian Chapter of the Controlled Release Society (CRS)
• Since 2014 – Member of the Italian Chemical Society (SCI)
• 2017 – Recognition by the European Commission: Publication “Nanotechnology for safe drug delivery. Niosomal approach to brain delivery”. JRC Publication No. JRC101527
• 2017 – Recognition by the European Commission: Publication “pH-sensitive niosomes: Effects on cytotoxicity and on inflammation and pain in murine models”. JRC Publication No. JRC101534
• 2018 – Best Poster Award: Prolongation of local pain insensitivity by anesthetic lidocaine loaded pH-TW20 Gly niosomes: effects on nociception in murine models of pain. NANOMEDICINE ROME 2018
• 2023 – QUID Sapienza: “expert professor”/expert faculty member for high-innovation teaching

Part VI – Other Activities
• 2010 to present: Invited lectures and oral presentations (6 conferences)
• 2012 to present: Member of Organising Committee of 4 national/international conferences
• 2012 to present: Reviewer for international journals focused on nanotechnology and drug delivery
• 2023 to present: Editorial Activities:
o Editorial Board Member of Frontiers in Chemistry – Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry
o Editorial Board Member of Journal of Pharmacy & Allied Medicine (JPAM)
• 2013 to present: International research collaborations:
o Department of Nanomedicine, Houston Methodist Research Institute, Houston, TX, USA (01/2013-01/2014)
o Department of Materials Engineering & University Hospital Research Center; Laval University, Quebec City, Canada (01/2014-30/06/2014)
o Department of Translational Imaging, Houston Methodist Research Institute, Houston, TX, USA (01/2014-01/2015)
o Department of Chemistry, Helwan University, Helwan, Egypt (01/2015-04/06/2015)
o Physics Department, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI, USA (05/2015-present)
o Centre for Cardiovascular Science, University of Edinburgh, UK (Project: “Investigation of the ability of gas-filled nanobubbles to deliver hydrophobic and hydrophilic compounds to the brain by disruption of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) using focused ultrasound) (01/02/2015-present)
o Department of Biology, Selçuk University Alaeddin Keykubat Campus, Konya, Turkey (01/01/2016-01/01/2017)
o REQUIMTE/LAQV, Group of Pharmaceutical Technology, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal (01/01/2017-present)
o Phospholipid Research Institute, Heidelberg, Germany (Project: “Antitubercular drug-loaded multi-liposome vectors as innovative combinatorial therapy for pulmonary tuberculosis.”) (01/07/2017-present)
o Institute of Pharmaceutical Science, King’s College London, UK (Prof. Julie Tzu-Wen Wang) (01/09/2017-01/09/2019)
o ESRF Grenoble, France, Dott. Moeller J. (01/01/2018-present)
o Laboratoire Charles Coulomb (CNRS) & University of Montpellier, France (Prof. D. Truzzolillo) “Role of drug-lipid interactions in drug leakage from charged liposomal vesicles: the case of Isoniazid.” (01/01/2019-present)
o Prof. Cesar Antonio Viseras, Dept. of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Technology, University of Granada, Spain: “Hybrid drug delivery systems: preparation and characterization.” (01/03/2019-present)
• 2009 to present: National research collaborations: University “Magna Græcia” of Catanzaro; University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti; University of Salento of Lecce; IRCCS Children’s Hospital Bambino Gesù, Rome; Italian National Institute of Health (ISS), Rome; University “Tor Vergata” of Rome; University of Milan; University of Pisa; CNR (Institute of Complex Systems ISC-CNR and Physics Department, Sapienza University of Rome); University of Naples “Federico II”; etc.
• 2013 to present: Coordination of the research group of Ospedale Bambin Gesù–Italian Institute of Technology–Sapienza University of Rome
• 2016: Participant in research project commissioned by CNR on the study and finalisation of a method to characterise the interaction between different polyelectrolytes and biological sludge by zeta potential analysis (€ 5,000)
• 2015: Participant in research project “Lactoferrin-loaded niosomes in reducing inflammation and infection of cystic-fibrosis airways.” Fondazione Fibrosi Cistica (FFC#12/2015, € 39,000)
• 2019 to present: Editorial Board Member of Letters in Drug Design & Discovery
• 2019 to present: Guest Editor for Pharmaceutics special issue: “Up-to-Date Pharmaceutical Applications of Micro/Nanoemulsions”
• 2014-2019: Collaboration with Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT), CLNS@Sapienza Rome:
o “Preparation and characterisation of vesicular systems for brain delivery” (01/10/2014-30/09/2017)
o “Research, design and experimentation of drug-delivery systems (DDS) capable of targeted drug release at the site of action” (01/10/2017-30/09/2019)

Part VII – Research Activities
Keywords: Drug Delivery, Drug Targeting, Nose-to-Brain, Parenteral Administration, Diagnostics, Theranostics, Liposomes, Niosomes, Nanobubbles, Nanoemulsions, Brain Delivery, Lung Delivery, Topical Delivery, Ocular Delivery
Dr Rinaldi’s research activity focuses on the study of phospholipid and non-phospholipid vesicles as drug delivery systems (soft nanocarriers). In particular, her work addresses the preparation and characterisation of vesicles for cytoplasmic delivery (e.g. pH-sensitive niosomes) and for TOPICAL, ORAL (coated liposomes), PULMONARY (coated/uncoated niosomes) and BRAIN (liposomes/niosomes) drug delivery. She is expert in the preparation and characterisation of O/W nanoemulsions, W/O nanoemulsions, nanobubbles and drug-delivery systems useful in the theranostic field. She has expertise in physico-chemical characterisation of different nanocarriers in terms of hydrodynamic diameter, ζ-potential, polydispersity index, stability over time and in different media, entrapment efficiency, bilayer characteristics (fluorescence spectroscopy), and release-rate evaluation. Additionally, her research is focused on innovative pharmaceutical forms for skin and buccal pathologies.
Her scientific production includes about 60 international research papers (Scopus), 3 patents (Espacenet), 1 book chapter (Scopus), 1 conference proceeding (Scopus), 1 national research paper (IRIS).
Her main research lines include surfactant-based or phospholipid-based drug-delivery systems. She studied niosomes and liposomes and their applications, particularly for brain delivery via intranasal administration or ultrasound-mediated blood-brain barrier opening. Her work includes the design, preparation and thorough physico-chemical characterisation of such nanocarriers.
She developed pH-sensitive surfactant molecules (e.g., hemisuccinate-cholesterol, glycine-derivatised Tween 20/Tween 21) to prepare and characterise pH-sensitive niosomes. For brain delivery, she designed non-ionic surfactant vesicles (NSVs) using Span-20/Tween 20-DCP, and studied formulation of ammonium glycyrrhizinate loaded into Tween 85/Span 20/cholesterol vesicles for inflammatory disease treatment. She evaluated vesicle morphology via AFM, SAXS, TEM, SEM, stability in various biological media (Hepes buffer, mucin, bovine/human serum, SIF, SGF, aCSF, cell culture media). She conducted toxicological profiling on human keratinocyte (HaCaT) and mouse fibroblast (Balb/3T3) cells, and in vitro/in vivo efficacy studies. She investigated brain delivery strategies: intranasal route, ultrasound-mediated BBB disruption and nanobubbles (vesicles filled with perfluorocarbon gas, surfactant bilayer) enabling cavitation and sonoporation for drug uptake. She also prepared functional O/W nanoemulsions with essential oils (Neem, Thymus vulgaris, Syzygium aromaticum, Satureja montana L, almond oil) for topical or parenteral use, and chitosan-coated nanoemulsions for nose-to-brain and pulmonary delivery (exploiting chitosan’s penetration enhancement and mucociliary clearance delay).

Part VIII – Funding Information [Grants as PI or Investigator]
• 2009: “Phospholipid and non-phospholipid vesicles from commercial and synthetic polysorbates: characterisation and potential applications in CNS pathologies.” Code: C26A09L28K
• 2010: “Development of innovative magnetic multivectors for active targeting in tumour tissues.” Code: C26A10SKLZ
• 2012: “Antitubercular drug-loaded chitosan-niosomes (ChyNo) vectors as innovative inhalable drug-delivery systems for pulmonary tuberculosis.” Code: C26A12PZL3
• 2013: “Lipid and surfactant coated nanobubbles for theranostic applications: preparation and acoustic characterization.” Code: C26A13LMAZ
• 2014: “Multifunctional ‘nanodroplets’ (MNDs): preparation, acoustic characterization and potential applications.” Code: C26A144PJJ
• 2015: “A novel pharmacological approach to treat Parkinson’s disease: a pre-clinical study on Pentasomes (pentamidine-niosomes systems).” Code: C26M15SP9F
• 2019: “Polymer or surfactant-based nanoencapsulation of cannabidiol and its new analogues: preparation, characterization and evaluation of antibacterial activity.” Protocol number: RG11916B84E5DC44
• 2021: “Novel frontiers in nanocarriers preparation and characterisation.” Protocol: CC12117A85B20B13
• 2021: “Novel strategies to treat TB meningitis: from new active compounds to N2B delivery.” Protocol: RG12117A8669903E
• 2022: “Study of the composition and antimicrobial activity of natural oils for the preparation of nanoemulsions useful in the improvement of the composting process.” Protocol: RM1221816B3E619B
• 2023 (submitted): “New strategies to manage oral mucositis among hematopoietic stem cell transplantation patients: a multidisciplinary approach.” Protocol: RG123188B474902F
Additional Projects at Sapienza University of Rome
• 2024: “Antibacterial Potential of Itrana Olive Oil Polyphenols Against Fusobacterium nucleatum in oral and gastrointestinal inflammatory pathologies.” Type: Small/Medium Research Projects – Medium size. Responsible: Fabrizio Guerra. Role: Investigator. Protocol: RM1241910861FD98 – Sent 31/07/2024 at 12:42
• 2023: “Sapienza NanoOptical Microscopy (SNOM)” – Large Scientific Equipment. Responsible: Stefano Lupi. Role: Investigator. Protocol: GA123188D3BCE6EE – Sent 19/06/2023 at 14:59
• 2023: “New strategies to manage oral mucositis among hematopoietic stem cell transplantation patients: a multidisciplinary approach.” Large Research Projects – Large size. Responsible: Carlotta Marianecci. Role: Investigator. Protocol: RG123188B474902F – Sent 13/06/2023 at 13:11
• 2022: “Innovative High Resolution Mass Spectrometry Based on Dual Fragmentation Process: a New Frontier for Structure Elucidation of Chemical Systems.” Large Scientific Equipment. Responsible: Osvaldo Lanzalunga. Role: Investigator. Protocol: GA122181AEFBE248 – Sent 29/06/2022 at 12:22
• 2022: “Study of the composition and antimicrobial activity of natural oils for the preparation of nanoemulsions useful in the improvement of the composting process.” Medium Research Projects. Responsible: Federica Rinaldi. Role: Principal Investigator. Protocol: RM1221816B3E619B – Sent 16/06/2022 at 08:40

Part IX – Summary of Scientific Achievements (11-2025)
Part IX – Scientific Achievements (updated 11/2025)
• International publications: 60
• Conference Proceedings: 1
• National publications: 1
• Book chapters: 1
• Patents:3


Total Citations: 2,401 (Scopus)
Average citations per publication: 34.58 (Scopus)
Total Impact Factor: 205.1 (Scopus)
Average Impact Factor: 3.9 (Scopus)

(Data 11, 2025)