The fundamental objective of the educational offer of the PhD in Morphogenesis and Tissue Engineering is to prepare PhD students to deal with the complexity of biological processes through paths that aim at a rigorous process of analysis, interpretation of data, consolidation of evidence and critical capacity . The program is designed to equip doctoral students with the necessary background to implement critical thinking as a generator of new ideas and promote correct and rigorous communication through a series of seminars and courses oriented towards the doctoral research topics. In particular, the general objective of the doctorate consists in the acquisition of both experimental and methodological skills to carry out rigorous and qualified research activity.
The overall aim of the PhD program is to acquire: 1) biotechnologic skills (e.i. histological, histochemical techniques, imaging, confocal microscopy, TEM, SEM, in situ hybridization, cell, organ and embryo cultures, production of transgenic and knock out animals, preparation of constructs and analysis of gene products, single nucleus RNA seq and ATAC seq, spatial transcriptomics, in vivo gene delivery, analysis / purification of homogeneous cell populations using FACS, stem cell transplantation techniques and 3D cell systems); 2) analytical skills (statistical, dynamic modeling, tissue engineering and prosthetics); 3) skills to the use of brain-computer interfaces for communication between subjects and electronic devices; 4) skills to the study of cortical activity during cognitive tasks in humans; 5) skills to the development and validation of nanotechnologies for the delivery of drugs and nucleic acids in vitro and in vivo; 6) skills to the study of the interactions between nanomaterials and biological fluids for the development of technologies for the early diagnosis of tumors.
In particular, the research interests are distributed in three main curricula:
Curriculum in Morphogenetic and Cytological Sciences
The training objectives are divided into lines of research which consist in the study of the mechanisms that regulate the differentiation of somatic cells in relation to:
a) the expression and maintenance of the differentiated state and in particular the regulatory role of signal molecules in histogenesis, homeostasis and tissue regeneration;
b) embryogenesis and histogenesis, studying in particular the mechanisms of induction and determination of mesodermal structures and the genesis and role of the stem cell compartment and precursors;
c) the identification of the molecular mechanisms underlying myeloid differentiation of the hematopoietic stem cells in models of myeloid differentiation and leukemogenesis;
d) tissue engineering; generation and characterization of three-dimensional cellular models (in vitro neo-organogenesis) for cell-cell interaction and the role of tissue niche components on the activity of stem cells and to design therapeutic approaches for pre-clinical applications;
e) cardiac remodelling, through the characterization of the molecular basis of heart failure, the role of inflammatory factors and PKC isoforms in the establishment of hypertrophy;
f) stem cell transplant and regenerative medicine;
g) the physiopathologic interplay between nerve and muscle.
Curriculum in Cell Sciences and Technologies.
The main areas of training for this curriculum are:
a) the regulation of the cell cycle and apoptosis: study of molecular regulators of the intrinsic and extrinsic pathways of apoptosis induction, relationships with the mechanisms that regulate the cycle and the protection systems from cell death;
b) the biology of spermatogonial stem cells; isolation and characterization of germ stem cells in mammals including humans, prerequisites for their potential use in medical therapy, for the treatment and prevention of infertility and in tumors of germ cells.
c) the regulation of gene expression and differentiation, with interest in the mechanisms of differentiation of the male and female germ line during gonadal development and the paracrine molecular signals of the somatic component.
d) cellular interactions and morphogenesis, with reference to the development of the gonads, the histogenesis of specific cell populations of the gonads, the morphogenetic mechanisms in the development of seminiferous tubules and ovarian follicles;
e) tissue homeostasis and neoplastic transformation: mechanisms of interaction between alterations in tissue homeostasis induced by inflammatory stimuli (cytokines and/or agents that mimic pathogenic infections) and carcinogenesis or tumor progression in cell lines of various types of hyperplasia and carcinoma; cross-talk between the signaling pathways activated by innate immunity receptors and oncogenes in the establishment of transformed phenotype; role of immunosuppressive mechanisms activated in tumor cells and strategies to restore anti-tumor immune surveillance.
Curriculum in Cell and Tissue Biophysics.
The research topics on which the training path of this curriculum focuses involve the acquisition of skills in:
a) mathematical modeling, multivariate statistics and biophysical chemistry;
b) spectroscopic methods;
c) dynamic simulations and modeling of biosystems at different dimensional scales;
d) acquisition and analysis techniques of biosignals and images of biomedical interest;
e) use of brain-computer interfaces for communication between subjects and electronic devices, and the study of cortical activity during cognitive tasks in humans;
f) development and validation of nanotechnologies for the delivery of drugs and nucleic acids in vitro and in vivo;
g) study of the interactions between nanomaterials and biological fluids for the development of technologies for the early diagnosis of tumors.
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