Franco Bisceglie was born in Cremona, Italy, on August 14, 1972. He graduated from the University of Parma in 1997 with a thesis entitled “Synthesis of SNO-Coordinating Systems with Biological Activity”. At the same university, he obtained his Ph.D. in Chemical Sciences by defending a dissertation 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, where he carried out research entitled “Synthesis of Tripodal Ligands C-Centred. 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 conduct research within the themes “Metal Ions in Human Diagnostics and Therapy” and “New Inorganic Drugs in Oncology”. He also carried out professional consultancy activities concerning the synthesis and characterization of non-cisplatin-like metal complexes as potential antitumor agents.
In 2004, he obtained a Second-Level University Master's Degree in Quality Control and Validation of Chemical Analysis Methods from the University of Parma with full marks and honors (110/110 cum laude). His thesis was entitled “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 Assistant Professor (Researcher) in 2005 and Associate Professor in 2015 at the University of Parma in the scientific disciplinary sector CHIM/03 (General and Inorganic Chemistry), having also obtained the National Scientific Qualification (ASN) for CHIM/07 (Foundations of Chemistry for Technologies). He subsequently achieved the National Scientific Qualification (ASN) for Full Professor in CHIM/03.
His current research activity focuses on the synthesis and characterization of metal complexes with bidentate and polydentate ligands, particularly thiosemicarbazones. His studies mainly concern the coordination properties of first-row transition metals. He also investigates, through spectroscopic techniques, the interactions between synthesized complexes and biological substrates, evaluating radical scavenging properties as well as interactions with DNA and small proteins. He has designed and developed synthetic routes for multicomponent organic-inorganic systems, subsequently characterized by spectroscopic and diffraction techniques. Particular attention has been devoted to the study of molecular structure as a basis for understanding chemical reactivity toward biological systems.
His research has explored structure–activity relationships, chelating behavior, and the steric and electronic properties of multifunctional ligands, including aromatic and aliphatic thiosemicarbazones derived from biologically relevant molecules. More recently, his interests have expanded to the synthesis of metal complexes with antibacterial activity aimed at combating antimicrobial resistance, as well as the identification of compounds with antifungal and anti-aflatoxigenic properties. He is also interested in the interactions between metal complexes and reactive oxygen species (ROS) as potential targets in anticancer therapy.
He has also been involved in the design and development of new materials and the modification of existing materials for engineering applications, evaluating their technological feasibility, industrial transfer potential, structural properties, environmental impact, and innovative analytical applications.
At the University of Parma, he served as a member of the Board of Directors and chaired the Committee responsible for allocating funds to Student Associations. He was also a member of the University's Disciplinary Board.
From the academic year 2016/2017 until 2024, he served as Quality Assurance Coordinator (RAQ) for the Bachelor's Degree Programme in Chemistry and was a member of its Review Group. Between 2015 and 2017, he was Research Quality Assurance Coordinator for the Department of Chemistry.
For the academic years 2024/2025 and 2025/2026, he has been a member of the Review Group of the Ph.D. Programme in Chemistry. Since 2025, he has been an academic member of the Coordination Group for activities related to the periodic accreditation visit by ANVUR (Italian National Agency for the Evaluation of Universities and Research Institutes). Since 2026, he has served as Delegate of the Director of the Department of Chemical, Life and Environmental Sustainability Sciences for Research and Third Mission activities.
In 2026, he was elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC). In May 2026, he was Visiting Professor under the Erasmus STA+ programme at the University of Oradea (Romania).
He is a member of the Italian Chemical Society (SCI) and, since 2025, of the Society of Biological Inorganic Chemistry (SBIC) and of the American Chemical Society (ACS).
He participated in the following nationally funded PRIN research projects:
“Design of Copper(II) Thiosemicarbazone and Triazole Complexes and Evaluation of the Mechanisms Underlying Apoptotic and Non-Apoptotic Cytotoxic Effects” (2007);
“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 the Cariplo Foundation entitled “A Biotechnological Approach to the Development of New Antifungal Drugs for Environmental and Human Health Protection”, in the University-funded project “A Sustainable Approach to Curb Food Contamination by Aflatoxins” (2019–2022), and in “A Way Towards Artificial Metalloenzymes: Redesigned Catalysts and Tools to Understand Nanoscale Reactivity” (2022–2025).
He serves on the Editorial Boards of the journals Molecules, Compounds (MDPI), and Scientific Reports (Springer Nature). He acts as referee for numerous international journals in the fields of inorganic and bioinorganic chemistry.
He has served as an expert evaluator for the National Center of Science and Technology (Kazakhstan) and the National Science Centre (Poland).
Until the academic year 2025/2026, he has been a member of the Ph.D. Board in Chemical Sciences at the University of Parma.
He has been affiliated with the Interuniversity Consortium for Research in the Chemistry of Metals in Biological Systems (CIRCMSB) and is currently a member of the following research centers:
CERT – Centre of Excellence for Toxicological Research;
COMT – Interdepartmental Centre for Molecular and Translational Oncology Research;
INSTM – National Interuniversity Consortium for Materials Science and Technology.
He has supervised two Ph.D. dissertations in Chemistry and numerous Bachelor's and Master's theses in Chemistry and Civil Engineering, as well as first-level Master's theses in Packaging.
He collaborates with local industries on research projects involving various topics in inorganic chemistry and materials science.
As of May 23, 2026 (Scopus database), Franco Bisceglie is the author of 79 scientific publications and numerous conference presentations. His ORCID identifier is 0000-0001-9165-0356. His h-index is 31, and his work has received 3,082 citations.
