Personale docente

CURRICULUM VITAE
European format
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Personal information
Name / Surname
Stefano Bettati
Address
Strada Antina 18, 43123 Parma, Italy
Telephone
+39 0521 905502
Fax
+39 0521 905151
E-mail
stefano.bettati@unipr.it
Website
https://personale.unipr.it/it/ugovdocenti/person/18101
Nationality
Italian
Place and date of birth
08 July 1966, Parma, Italy
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Professional experience
1999–2000
Postdoctoral Fellow of the European Molecular Biology Organization at the Laboratory of Chemical Physics, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
2000–2001
Research Grant Holder at the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Parma, on the topic:
“Mechanisms of protein folding–unfolding processes: structural, dynamic and functional characterization of pyridoxal 5’-phosphate-dependent enzymes and heme proteins”.
2001–2006
Researcher (Ricercatore) at the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, University of Parma, Scientific-Disciplinary Sector FIS/07 – Applied Physics (to cultural heritage, environment, biology and medicine).
2006–present
Full Professor (Professore Ordinario) in the Scientific-Disciplinary Sector FIS/07 – Applied Physics (to cultural heritage, environment, biology and medicine), Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, University of Parma.
2011–present
Member of the Board of SITEIA (Interdepartmental Center for the Safety and Innovation of Food Technologies), University of Parma.
2011–present
Member of the Board of Biopharmanet-Tec (Interdepartmental Center for Innovation in Health Products), University of Parma.
2013–present
Member of the Academic Board of the PhD Programme in Drug, Biomolecule and Health Products Sciences.
2016–2023
Coordinator of the Neuroscience Unit, Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Parma.
2016–2018
Member of the National Scientific Qualification Committee (Abilitazione Scientifica Nazionale) for the Scientific-Disciplinary Sector FIS/07 – Applied Physics (to cultural heritage, environment, biology and medicine).
2019–present
Associate Researcher at the National Research Council (CNR), Institute of Biophysics.
2019–present
Member of the Board of the Interdepartmental Center for Measurements “G. Casnati”, University of Parma.
2020–2021
Deputy Vice-President of the Single-Cycle Degree Programme in Medicine and Surgery, University of Parma.
2021–present
Member of the Academic Senate, University of Parma.
From 01/01/2024
Director of the Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Parma.
Name and address of employer
University of Parma
Type of business or sector
Education / Research
Occupation or position held
Full Professor
Main activities and responsibilities
Teaching and research
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Education and training
1999–2000
Postdoctoral fellow at the Laboratory of Chemical Physics, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA, directed by Dr. William A. Eaton.
1997–1998
Fellowship from the National Institute for the Physics of Matter on the topic “Folding of O-acetylserine sulfhydrylase studied by steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence of tryptophans and coenzyme”.
Institute of Physical Sciences / Institute of Biochemical Sciences, University of Parma.
1994–1998
PhD Programme in Molecular Biology and Pathology (University of Modena).
Thesis on “Oxygen binding to hemoglobin in the T quaternary state”.
1992
Degree with honours in Veterinary Medicine, University of Parma.
Thesis on “Allosteric regulation of the multifunctional enzyme tryptophan synthase”.
Name and type of organisation providing education and training
• Laboratory of Chemical Physics, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
• Laboratory of Fluorescence Dynamics, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, IL, USA
• University of Modena
• University of Parma
Principal subjects / occupational skills covered
Molecular biophysics, biochemistry, spectroscopy, applications of proteins in the biomedical field.
Title of qualification awarded
PhD in Molecular Biology and Pathology
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Research activities
Current research areas
Structure–dynamics–function relationships in proteins, their regulation and biomedical applications.
Recent scientific activities and funding
Characterization of stability, dynamic and functional properties of proteins in solution, in the crystalline state and in nano- and mesoporous silica gels (vitamin B6-dependent proteins; hemoglobin; GFP; uricolytic enzymes; transcription factors).
Protein–protein interactions (multienzyme complexes), protein–DNA interactions, and interactions of enzymes with drugs and small ligands.
Purification of proteins of interest from human and animal sources, or production by recombinant methods in bacterial systems. Structural, dynamic and functional properties are investigated by spectroscopic techniques (time-resolved and steady-state fluorescence, absorption, circular dichroism, microspectrophotometry), mass spectrometry, STD-NMR, and kinetic techniques (stopped-flow, flash photolysis).
Particular attention is devoted to the exploitation of basic research results in the biomedical field, for example in the development and screening of enzyme inhibitors with potential antibacterial activity, chemically or genetically modified hemoglobins for in vivo oxygen transport, and the conjugation of enzymes with biocompatible polymers for enzyme replacement therapy.

Scientific and organisational roles
• Member of the Organising Committee of the International Course “From structural biology to drug discovery” (Parma, 2000).
• Member of the Scientific and Organising Committee of the International Courses “From structural genomics to drug discovery” (Parma, 2002, 2004).
• Member of the Organising Committee of the international conference “International Visions on Blood Substitutes. Hemoglobin-Based Oxygen Carriers: from Chemistry to Clinic” (Parma, 2006).
• Vice-Chairman and member of the Organising Committee of the international congress “New Challenges in Protein Science” (Parma, 2008).
• Member of the Organising Committee of the international conference “XII International Symposium on Blood Substitutes” (Parma, 2009).
• Session Chairman at the international congress “XVIIth International Conference on Oxygen Binding and Sensing Proteins” (Parma, 2012).
• Member of the Organising Committee and Session Chairman at the international congress “ICC04 – The Fourth International Conference on Cofactors” (Parma, 2014).
Editorial and reviewing activities
• Member of the Editorial Board of Sensors.
• Reviewer for international journals.
• Co-editor, with Stefano Bruno (University of Parma), of a thematic issue of Current Organic Chemistry on “Organic polymeric matrices for the three-dimensional immobilization of proteins: a biochemical and biophysical perspective” (2015).
• Guest Editor, with Cristiano Viappiani (University of Parma) and F. Javier Luque (University of Barcelona, Spain), of a Special Issue of Biochimica et Biophysica Acta – Proteins and Proteomics on “Protein Dynamics” (2011).
• Co-editor, with Andrea Mozzarelli, of the book “Chemistry and Biochemistry of Oxygen Therapeutics: from Transfusion to Artificial Blood”, John Wiley and Sons, Ltd. (2011).
Scientific societies and networks
• Associate of the Institute of Biophysics, National Research Council (IBF-CNR).
• Member of the Italian Physical Society, of the National Interuniversity Consortium for the Physical Sciences of Matter (CNISM), of the National Institute for Biostructures and Biosystems, and of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.
• Member and MC Substitute of COST Action CM1306 (Understanding Movement and Mechanism in Molecular Machines).
• Member of COST Action BM1405 (NGP-net: Non-globular Proteins in Molecular Physiopathology).
• Member of COST Action CA21160 (ML4NGP: Non-globular proteins in the era of Machine Learning).
• Member of COST Action CA21145 (Eurestop: European network for diagnosis and treatment of antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections).
Publications and evaluation activities
• Author of over 150 papers in indexed international journals, monographs and book chapters.
• Reviewer of scientific projects for the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR; Projects of Relevant National Interest – PRIN, “Rita Levi Montalcini” programmes for young researchers), for foreign funding agencies (USA, France, United Kingdom, Poland), and of academic careers on behalf of foreign universities (France, Nigeria).
Funding from national and international bodies (selection)
• 2023 – Unit Coordinator (Interdepartmental Center SITEIA.PARMA) of the PR-FESR project “Unirecondition”.
• 2022 – Principal Investigator of PRIN 2020AE3LTA project “ERASE – DEfeat Antimicrobial Resistance through Iron StArvation in Staphylococcus aurEus”.
• 2020 – Awarded funding for a research grant (Assegno di Ricerca), “Alte Competenze” call, DGR 2088-2019 – Emilia-Romagna Region, on “Conjugation of proteins with fluorescent probes for imaging applications and studies of interactions with drugs”.
• 2018 – Unit Coordinator for PRIN 2017BJJLPE project “The role of frataxin in iron-sulfur cluster biogenesis and disease”.
• 2016–2018 – Member of POR-FES “Drugdelivery” project.
• 2010–2012 – Unit Coordinator for PRIN 2008JZ4MLB project “Development of fluorescent proteins for optical nanoscopy oriented to the study of cellular dynamics”.
• 2007–2009 – Unit Coordinator for PRIN 2006025255 project “Conformational substates and folding–unfolding pathways in green fluorescent protein: an experimental and theoretical study towards discrete states in proteins”.
Since 1996, member of several nationally and internationally funded projects, including PRIN and FIRB projects, a POR/FESR project on pulmonary delivery of therapeutic proteins (2016–2028), a three-year grant (2014–2016) from the Telethon Foundation on “Development of an uricolytic treatment for HPRT-deficiency in animal models”, and a European Union project within the VI Framework Programme on “EuroBlood Substitutes” (2004–2007).
Funding for industrial and applied research
• Twelve research contracts (from 2015 to present) with pharmaceutical companies for the expression, purification and structural characterization of surfactant proteins in complex matrices, or the study of interactions between drugs and target proteins.
• Research contracts with companies in the agri-food sector for microanalytical studies on plant-derived products.