Here you can find contact details and publications of our current PhD students.
XL cycle
Damiano Barnaba | XL cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: damiano.barnaba@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Eleonora Candi / Dr Artem Smirnov
Project: Role of p63 in bladder: differentiation, development and tumorigenesis 
ORCID: 0009-0005-5022-1762
Giulio Colasanto | XL cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail:
Tutor: Prof. Alessia Angelin
Project: ORCID
Kevin Cornali | XL cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: kevin.cornali@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof Annalisa Noce / Dr Stefania Petrosino ORCID: 0009-0004-8904-4399
Elisa Cortellesi | XL cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: elisa.cortellesi@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof Valeria Gasperi
Project: Deciphering novel roles of the miR-126-ATAD2 target gene in chromatin remodelling during breast carcinogenesis ORCID: 0009-0007-7906-1808
Ilaria Svezia | XL cycle
Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
E-mail: ilaria.svezia@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof Gerry Melino / Dr Antonella Sferra ORCID: 0009-0008-4919-5124
Giulia Urbani | XL cycle
Regina Elena Institute
E-mail: giulia.urbani@ifo.it
Tutor: Prof Giovanni Blandino / Prof Eleonora Candi
Project: Developing a first-in-class digital PCR multiplex assay to predict mucositis development upon anticancer treatments ORCID: 0009-0009-1343-3415
Matteo Veneziano | XL cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: matteo.veneziano@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Maria Valeria Catani
Project: Early tumorigenesis in breast: gradual loss of cell identity and gain of neural cell traits ORCID: 0009-0003-6120-4605
XXXIX cycle
Valeria Foti | XXXIX cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: valeria.foti.1@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Eleonora Candi
Project: Study of p63 interactome ORCID: 0009-0001-0305-8975
Federica Cerbara | XXXIX cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, University Hospital
E-mail: federica.cerbara@alumni.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Alessandro Mauriello
Project: Integrated omics for the study of the effect of enviromental pollution on complex diseases ORCID: 0009-0008-1595-3740
Elena Cornella | XXXIX cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, University Hospital
E-mail: elena.cornella@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Manuel Scimeca
Project: Digital pathology in the era of multi-omics analysis: a new paradigm for precision medicine ORCID: 0009-0009-9209-0181
Alessandro Montella | XXXIX cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: alessandro.montella@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Eleonora Candi
Project: The impact of the one carbon metabolism perturbation on lipids metabolism in keratinocytes and skin ORCID: 0009-0004-0211-5052
Giada Corti | XXXIX cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: giada.corti@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Massimo Bottini
Project: Characterization of extracellular vesicle-mediated physiologic and ectopic biomineralization processes under different conditions ORCID: 0009-0003-9168-8807
Veronica Bellanca | XXXIX cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Sciences
E-mail: veronica.bellanca@alumni.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Dr. Federica Rossin
Project: Transglutaminase type2 in hepatocellular carcinoma: toward new therapeutic strategies ORCID: 0009-0005-3855-3895
Valentina Di Francesco | XXXIX cycle
Istituto Dermopatico Dell’Immacolata – IDI IRCCS
E-mail: valentina.difrancesco@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Eleonora Candi
Project: Psoriasis in functional genomics: correlation between the presence of single nucleotide polymorphisms in the HLA-C gene and biogenesis of long non-coding RNA ORCID: 0009-0001-7921-1833
Aurora Puce | XXXIX cycle
IFO-IRE
E-mail: aurora.puce@ifo.it
Tutor: Dr. Rossella Loria
Project: New molecular targeted therapies in adult and pediatric osteosarcomas ORCID: 0009-0000-9921-0486
Claudia Fiorilli | XXXIX cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: claudia.fiorilli@alumni.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Francesca Bernassola
Project: The role of WWP1 in cellular metabolism ORCID: 0009-0005-6442-7083
Riccardo Marangon | XXXIX cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: riccardo.marangon@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Eleonora Candi
Project: Identifying the role of one carbon metabolism in replicative senescence ORCID: 0009-0000-9635-8549
Riccardo Belardi | XXXIX cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: riccardo.belardi@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Alessandro Terrinoni & Prof. Elena Campione
Project: Biochemical role of AAGAB in normal epidermal differentiation and in pathological conditions ORCID: 0009-0001-2465-9235
Irene Masciola | XXXIX cycle
Istituto Superiore di Sanità
E-mail: irene.masciola@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Dr Sabrina Tait
Project: Valutazione del rischio/beneficio dell’assunzione di nutrienti e contaminanti alimentari ad azione endocrina sul signalling ipotalamo-tessuto adiposo mediante approcci avanzati in vitro in ottica di genere ORCID: 0009-0006-7667-7124
Francesco Mattia Bonanni | XXXIX cycle
Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS)
E-mail: francescomattia.bonanni@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Dr. Egidio Iorio
Project: Phosphatidylcholine metabolism in breast cancer: identification of new molecular targets ORCID: 0009-0003-2173-9736
Yijie Jiang | XXXIX cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
Tutor: Prof. Gerry Melino
Wenyuan Liu | XXXIX cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
Tutor: Prof. Gerry Melino
XXXVIII cycle
Benedetta Imperiali | XXXVIII cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: benedetta.imperiali.b@gmail.com
Tutor: Prof. Massimiliano Agostini
Project: Defining the role of ZNF750 as a lipid metabolism regulator in cancer
ORCID: 0000-0002-6908-4391
Publications
Montanaro et al Int J Mol Sci 2023
Alessia Violante | XXXVIII cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: alessia.violante02@gmail.com
Tutor: Prof. Eleonora Candi ORCID: 0009-0002-4266-6102
Sara De Domenico | XXXVIII cycle (CNR)
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: sara.dedomenico95@gmail.com
Tutor: Dr. Angelo Peschiaroli
Project: Studio del ruolo del lncRNA NEAT1 nelle cellule tumorali
Margherita Ferreti | XXXVIII cycle
L’Istituto Regina Elena dei Tumori (IRE)
E-mail: margheferre96@gmail.com
Project: From fetal-maternal interface immune tolerance to endometrial cancer immune escape: potential targets for immunotherapy ORCID: 0000-0002-7819-2546
Celeste Antonacci | XXXVIII cycle
Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesu’
E-mail: celesteantonacci@hotmail.it
Tutor: Prof Francesca Bernassola
Project: Targeting the unfolded protein response pathway in medulloblastoma: new strategies to impair cancer stem cells features ORCID: 0000-0003-2872-5401
Maria Paola Scioli | XXXVIII cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, University Hospital, Dipartimento di Anatomia Patologica
E-mail: mariapaola.scioli92@gmail.com
Tutor: Prof. Alessandro Mauriello
Project: Ruolo delle “paired-box proteins” nelle neoplasie umane ORCID: 0009-0004-8190-4526
Michael Caloisi | XXXVIII cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: michael.caloisi@gmail.com
Tutor: Prof. Eleonora Candi
Project: Ruolo del metabolismo della serina nel differenziamento epidermico
Federica Corigliano | XXXVIII cycle
Laboratorio di Genomica Funzionale del Cancro, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan
E-mail: federica.corigliano@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Francesca Bernassola
Project: Hampering plasticity in glioblastoma, towards a better treatment ORCID: 0000-0003-4331-8353
Publications
Gritti et al EMBO J 2022
Giorgia D’Addato | XXXVIII cycle
Università Unicamillus
E-mail: giorgia.daddato@alumni.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Francesca G. Klinger
Project: Studio di fattori rilasciati da cellule mesenchimali staminali di tessuto adiposo umano per larigenerazione del tessuto ovarico ORCID: 0009-0007-0235-1620
Mariacristina Franzese Canonico | XXXVIII cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: mariacristina.franzesecanonico@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Eleonora Candi / Dr Artem Smirnov
Project: p63 in bladder cancer ORCID: 0009-0003-0096-0503
Andrea Graziani | XXXVIII cycle
Università Unicamillus
E-mail: andrea.graziani@unicamillus.org
Tutor: Prof. Barbara Tavazzi
Project: Ricerca di nuovi biomarcatori molecolari nei fluidi biologici in malattie neurodegenerative acute e croniche ORCID: 0009-0003-2989-4183
Valeria Bartolocci | XXXVIII cycle
IDI-IRCCS
E-mail: valeria.bartolocci@hotmail.com
Tutor: Prof. Eleonora Candi
Project: 3D bioprinting di cute umana e carcinomi squamocellulari come modelli avanzati per la medicina di precisione
Xia Bozhang | XXXVIII cycle
XXXVII cycle
Donata Trivigno | XXXVI cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, University Hospital
E-mail: donatatrivigno@hotmail.it
Tutor: Prof. Alessandro Mauriello
Project: Apoptosis in cancer of colon, liver, and pancreas
Livia Concetti | XXXVII cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: livia.concetti@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Gerry Melino
Project: Regulation of 1C-metabolism enzymes in kidney cancer ORCID: 0000-0001-9336-9330
Publications
Ganini et al Int J Mol Sci 2022
Veronica La Banca | XXXVII cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: labanca.veronica@gmail.com
Tutor: Dr. Angelo Peschiaroli
Project: Elucidating the role of p63-Abcc1 axis in HNSCC ORCID: 0000-0003-0206-8394
Publications
Gatti et al PNAS 2022
Caterina Lanna | XXXVII cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, University Hospital
E-mail: dr.caterinalanna@gmail.com
Tutor: Prof. Elena Campione
Project: La nuova fotoprotezione ecosostenibile ORCID: 0000-0002-3485-6275
Recent publications
Lanna et al Exp Rev Cl Pharm 2022
Pellacani et al J Clin Med 2022
see more on Scopus
Giulia Tosetti | XXXVII cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: giulia.tosetti@alumni.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Eleonora Candi
Project: Study of One Carbon Metabolism in HNSCC ORCID: 0000-0002-7055-379X
Publications
Cappello et al CDDisco 2023
Valeria Palumbo | XXXVII cycle (PON)
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, University Hospital
E-mail: valeria.palumbo.25@students.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Alessandro Mauriello
Project: Ruolo del bioaccumulo di metalli pesanti nello sviluppo di placche ateromasiche carotidee (approssimativo) ORCID: 0000-0001-7756-6676
Simone Sergio | XXXVII cycle (PON)
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
E-mail: simone.sergio@alumni.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Eleonora Candi
Project: Individuazione delle vulnerabilità metaboliche comuni alle cellule epidermiche ed alle cellule immunitarie per lo sviluppo di nuove terapie sostenibili per la cura della psoriasi. ORCID: 0000-0002-9863-3740
Ilaria Arciero | XXXVII cycle
University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Faculty of Sciences
E-mail: ilaria.arciero@alumni.uniroma2.eu
Tutor: Prof. Sonia Melino
Project: Optimization of cell-biomaterial systems by 3D printing for in vitro studies of diseases: Osteoarthritis and Cancer ORCID: 0009-0003-5701-4796
Cristina Guerriero | XXXVII cycle