Meet the team

Laboratory Technician

I have a degree in Biology and a PhD in Agricultural Sciences and since 2007 I am a lab technician at the Department of Biology of the University of Pisa. I joined Beatrice Giuntoli’s lab in 2020, giving support for research projects and assistance to students and post docs. My skills are in biochemistry,  molecular biology and in vitro colture and my main interests focus on molecular and physiological aspects of model plants responses to environmental stresses, such as low oxygen availability and drought.

Postdoctoral researcher 

After completing my PhD at Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies of Pisa and gaining international experience at the University of Oxford, I returned to Pisa to continue my work on low oxygen sensing. My current research integrates this expertise with a strong interest in synthetic biology, aiming to apply its principles as broadly as possible to solve fundamental biological challenges. If I’m not in the lab, check the nearest cinema. 

PhD student  

I am a PhD student in Agrobiosciences at Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies of Pisa (Italy), conducting my research activities under the supervision of Prof. Giuntoli. My work focuses on the functional characterization of novel substrate proteins of the oxygen signaling pathway in Arabidopsis thaliana (Cysteine/N-degron pathway). I am devising a synthetic biology strategy that enables this pathway in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.  My aim is to discovery new substrate and how low oxygen levels regulate plant responses during stress, growth and development.

PhD student 

My research interests cover a wide spectrum of topics centered on synthetic biology and sustainability. I joined Beatrice’s group during my Master’s thesis that I carried out at the University of Oxford, where I investigated Plant Cysteine Oxidase 4 (PCO4) modification as a strategy to reduce plant susceptibility to environmental stresses such as flooding. 

My current research focuses on engineering Fatty Acid Photodecarboxylase (FAP) enzymes to improve their activity for future biofuel production. A genetically encoded biosensor will be expressed in bacteria for the high-throughput measurement of alkane production from FAP variants.

Visiting PhD student 

I am Andrea, a biotechnologist and PhD candidate in Agrobiotechnology at the University of Salamanca. I am currently carrying out an international research stay at the Department of Biology, University of Pisa, under the supervision of Prof. Beatrice Giuntoli. In Salamanca, I am part of the Plant Physiology and Hormone Signaling Group led by Prof. Óscar Lorenzo, where we study plant development and stress responses using model species such as Arabidopsis thaliana and Marchantia polymorpha. My research focuses on how plants perceive and respond to low-oxygen conditions, with a particular interest in nitric oxide–dependent signaling pathways and interactions between key proteins.