Personale docente

ranco Bisceglie was born in Cremona on August 14, 1972. He graduated in 1997 from the University of Parma with a thesis entitled “Synthesis of SNO-coordinating systems with biological activity”. At the same university, he obtained a PhD degree, defending a thesis entitled “Preparative, spectral and structural studies of new metal complexes with polydentate ligands of medical applicative interest”. During his doctoral studies, he spent six months at the Laboratoire de Chimie Bioorganique et Bioinorganique (LCBB) of the Institut de Chimie Moléculaire et des Matériaux d’Orsay (ICMMO), Université Paris XI, carrying out research entitled “Synthesis of C-centred tripodal ligands. Preparation, characterization, reaction with superoxide of the corresponding Fe(II) and Mn(II) complexes and biological activity” in the research group of Prof. I. Morgenstern-Badarau.

Franco Bisceglie was awarded two research fellowships funded by the Interuniversity Consortium for Research in the Chemistry of Metals in Biological Systems (C.I.R.C.M.S.B.) to carry out research activities within the themes “Metal ions in human diagnostics and therapy” and “New inorganic drugs in oncology”. He also carried out several professional consultancy assignments concerning the synthesis and characterization of non-cisplatin-like metal complexes as anticancer agents.

In 2004, he obtained a Second-Level University Master’s Degree in Quality Control and Validation of Chemical Analysis Methods at the University of Parma, graduating with full marks (110/110 cum laude). Thesis title: “Validation of an analytical method and experimental design for stability products: two critical aspects in drug research, improvements and revisions to optimize processes”.

He became a Researcher in 2005 and an Associate Professor in 2015 at the University of Parma in the scientific disciplinary sector CHIM/03, having also obtained the National Scientific Qualification (ASN) for sector CHIM/07. He has achieved the National Scientific Qualification (ASN) for Full Professor in sector CHIM/03.

His current research activity focuses on the synthesis and characterization of metal complexes with bidentate and polydentate ligands, particularly belonging to the class of thiosemicarbazones. His studies mainly concern coordination properties related to first-row transition metals. He also investigates, through spectroscopic techniques, the interactions of synthesized complexes with biological substrates in order to evaluate their reactivity, studying for example radical scavenging properties or interactions with DNA or small proteins. The synthesis of organic–inorganic multicomponent systems has been designed and optimized, followed by their characterization using spectroscopic and diffractometric methods. The study of their molecular structure has been developed as a basis for interpreting their chemical reactivity toward biological systems. The relationship between structure and biological activity has been investigated, with particular emphasis on chelating behavior and the steric and electronic properties of polyfunctional ligands such as aromatic and aliphatic thiosemicarbazones derived from biologically relevant molecules.

More recently, his research interests have expanded to the synthesis of metal complexes with antibacterial properties aimed at contributing to the reduction of antibiotic resistance, as well as to the identification of molecules with antifungal or anti-aflatoxigenic activity. He is also interested in the interactions of metal complexes with reactive oxygen species (ROS) as targets in anticancer therapy.

He has also been involved in the design and development of new materials or the modification of existing materials for engineering applications, evaluating their design feasibility and industrial transfer, as well as their structural properties and environmental impact, and in the development of innovative materials for advanced analytical applications.

He has served as a member of the Board of Directors of the University of Parma and chaired the Commission for the allocation of funds to Student Associations. He was also a member of the University Disciplinary Board.

From the academic year 2016/2017 until 2024, he served as Quality Assurance Officer (RAQ) for teaching for the Bachelor’s Degree Course in Chemistry and was a member of the Review Group (GdR) for the same degree program. Between 2015 and 2017, he was RAQ for Research for the Department of Chemistry. Since 2024, he has been a member of the Review Group of the PhD Program in Chemistry. Since 2025, he has been an academic member of the Coordination Group for activities related to the periodic accreditation visit by ANVUR. Since 2026, he has been the delegate of the Director of the Department of Chemical, Life and Environmental Sustainability Sciences for Research and Third Mission.

He has participated in the following PRIN projects funded by the Italian Ministry:
“Design of copper(II) thiosemicarbazone and triazole complexes and evaluation of the mechanisms underlying apoptotic and non-apoptotic cytotoxic effects” (2007), and “Innovative Analytical Methods to study biogenic and anthropogenic proxies in Ice Cores (AMICO)” (2017).

He also took part in the three-year project funded by Fondazione Cariplo “A biotechnological approach for the development of new antifungal drugs for environmental and human health protection”, in the project “A sustainable approach to curb food contamination by aflatoxins” funded by the University (2019–2022), and in the project “A Way Towards Artificial Metalloenzymes: Redesigned Catalysts and Tools to Understand Nanoscale Reactivity” funded by the University (2022–2025).

He is a member of the Editorial Boards of the journals Molecules and Compounds (MDPI) and Scientific Reports (Springer), and serves as a referee for numerous journals in the fields of inorganic and bioinorganic chemistry. He has acted as an expert evaluator for the National Center of Science and Technology (Kazakhstan) and for the National Science Centre (Poland).

He is a member of the PhD Board in Chemical Sciences at the University of Parma. He has been a member of CIRCMSB – Interuniversity Consortium for Research in the Chemistry of Metals in Biological Systems – and is currently affiliated with the following centers: CERT – Center of Excellence for Toxicological Research; COMT – Interdepartmental Center for Research in Molecular and Translational Oncology; and INSTM – National Interuniversity Consortium for Materials Science and Technology. He is a member of the Italian Chemical Society (SCI).

As of February 3, 2026 (SCOPUS), Franco Bisceglie is the author of 78 publications and numerous conference presentations. His ORCID ID is 0000-0001-9165-0356. His h-index is 31, with a total of 3,022 citations.