Sara Cimini
Biography
Dr. Sara Cimini achieved:
o RESEARCH DOCTORATE
in Biochemical Sciences and Technologies Applied to Food and Nutrition _ Cycle XXV
at the 'Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma (26 / 03 / 2013)
Thesis title: “Redox and fructan metabolism – Implication for Productivity and nutritional value of crops”
Speaker Prof. Laura De Gara
or II LEVEL MASTER
in Bioinformatics: Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Applications
at the University of Rome La Sapienza, with vote magna cum laude (annual master achieved on 20/12/2010).
Thesis title: "Prediction by homology modeling of the three-dimensional structure of a fructosyltransferase in plants"
Speaker Prof. Alessandro Paiardini and Prof. Stefano Pascarella
or MASTER'S DEGREE
in Cellular and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Mathematical, Physical and Natural Sciences
at the University of Rome Tor Vergata, with vote magna cum laude (2007-2009, achieved on 01/10/2009).
Thesis title: "Setup of an experimental system for the study of programmed cell death in plant cell cultures - Preliminary analysis of the involvement of poly (ADP-ribose) polymerases"
Supervisor Prof. Mauro Marra and Prof. Laura De Gara
or THREE-YEAR DEGREE
in Biotechnology, Faculty of Mathematical, Physical and Natural Sciences
at the University of Rome Tor Vergata, with vote magna cum laude (2003-2007, achieved on 22/02/2007).
Curriculum
ACADEMIC CAREER
or Researcher (RTD-B) in SSD BIO/04 (1/06/2023-ongoing) at Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma
o Qualification as full professor in the SSD BIO/04 (03/06/2022-03/06/2033) (ASN)_Settore Concorsuale 05/A2
o Researcher (RTD-A) in SSD BIO/01 (1/06/2020-current) at UCBM
Call title: “Study of defense responses in different crop varieties toward biotic and abiotic stresses with particular attention to metabolites of nutritional interest and to microRNA-dependent regulatory mechanisms”
o Research Fellow" in Plant Biology and Physiology (2013-2020) at the Campus Bio-Medico of Rome in the Biochemistry and Plant Biotechnology laboratory. Scientific Responsible: Prof. Laura De Gara
Activity carried out on two projects:
- “Regulation of antioxidative mechanisms activated by plants in response to changing environmental conditions” (2016-2020)
- “Cyclic Nucleotides in Biotic Stress Signaling in Plants” (2013-1015)
o Holder of a Project Contract (01/04/2013-01/06/2013)
Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma
TEACHING ACTIVITIES
o Lecturer in charge of a 4 CFU module in the teaching of Plant Biology (BIO/01) (AY 2020-ongoing)
Degree Course in Food Science and Human Nutrition
Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma
o Teacher of a 1 CFU module in the teaching of Plant Biochemistry and Biotechnology (BIO/04) (AY 2020-ongoing)
Master's Degree Course in Food Science and Human Nutrition
Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma
o Integrative teaching activities in the teaching of Plant Biology (BIO/01) (AY 2015-2020)
Degree Course in Food Science and Human Nutrition
Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma
o Integrative teaching activities in the teaching of Applied Genomics (BIO/11)” (BIO/11) (AY 2015-2020)
Master's Degree Course in Food Science and Human Nutrition
Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma
o Didactic activity in the program "The Grand Challenge Scholars Program" (AY 2020-ongoing)
Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma
o Didactic activity in the international program “The Foodture Academy | The Foodture meet” (AY 2021-ongoing)
Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma
Supervisor (co-tutor) of Master's and PhD students:
Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma
PhD students
XXXVI cycle _ Dr. Valentina Ramundi
XXXVII cycle _ Dr. Michela Molinari
XXXVII cycle _ Dr. Irene Sbrocca
XXXIII cycle _ Dr. Valentina Giacinti
Master's degree students
Master's Thesis (2020-2021) _ Dr. Michela Molinari
International Master's Thesis (2012-2013) _ Dr. Liesbeth Vandenpoel
Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium
Molecular Plant Biology Master's Degree
EXPERIENCES ABROAD
o Visiting Post-Doc Researcher (09/2019 – 12/2019)
Autonomous University of Barcelona (Spain). Center for Research in Agricultural Genomics
(UAB - CRAG - CSIC - IRTA - UB)
Project title: “Identification and functional validation of novel miRNAs involved in rice innate immunity”
Advisor: Dr. Blanca San Segundo
o Visiting PhD student (02/2011 – 09/2011)
Catholic University of Leuven (Belgium). Molecular Plant Biology Laboratory
Project title: “Fructan metabolism in Triticum durum and T. aestivum”
Advisor: Prof. Wim Van den Ende
AWARDS
o European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) (Sept. 2019 – Dec. 2019)
EMBO Short Term Fellowship for research exchanges between laboratories in EMBC Member States
Host Institute: Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona - Center for Research in Agricultural Genomics (UAB - CRAG- CSIC- IRTA - UB)
Project title: “Identification and functional validation of novel miRNAs involved in rice innate immunity”
PUBLICATIONS
- Murgia, I., Midali, A., Cimini, S., ..., Paucelle, A., Morandini, P. 2023. The Arabidopsis thaliana Gulono-1,4 γ-lactone oxidase 2 (GULLO2) facilitates iron transport from endosperm into developing embryos and affects seed coat suberization. Plant Physiology and Biochemistry this. 196, 712–723.
- Lo Presti D., Di Tocco J., Massaroni C., Cimini S., ... Cinti S. 2022. Current understanding, challenges and perspective on portable systems applied to plant monitoring and precision agriculture. Biosensors and Bioelectronics. 222, 115005
- Cimini S., Locato V., Giacinti V., Molinari M., De Gara L. 2022. A Multifactorial Regulation of Glutathione Metabolism behind Salt Tolerance in Rice. Antioxidants. 11(6), 1114
- Pasqualetti V., Locato V., Fanali C., Mulinacci N., Cimini S., Morgia AM, Pasqua G., De Gara L. 2021. Comparison between in vitro chemical and ex vivo biological assays to evaluate antioxidant capacity of botanical extracts. Antioxidants. 10:1136
- García-Ulloa A., Sanjurjo L., Cimini S.*, Encina A., Martínez-Rubio R., Bouza R., Barral L., Estévez-Pérez G., Novo-Uzal E., De Gara L., Pomar F. 2020. Overexpression of ZePrx in Nicotiana tabacum Affects Lignin Biosynthesis Without Altering Redox Homeostasis. Frontiers in Plant Science. 11:900, *Corresponding Author
- Cimini S., Gualtieri C., Macovei A., Balestrazzi A., De Gara L., Locato V. 2019. Redox balance-DDR-miRNA triangle: relevance in genome stability and stress responses in plants. Front Plant Sci. 10:989.
- Sabetta W, Vandelle E, Locato V, Costa A, Cimini S, Bittencourt Moura A, Luoni L, Graf A, Viggiano L, De Gara L, Bellin D, Blanco E, de Pinto MC. 2019. Genetic buffering of cyclic AMP in Arabidopsis thaliana compromises the plant immune response triggered by an avirulent strain of Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato. Plant J. 98: 590-606.
- Location V*, Cimini S*, De Gara L. 2018. ROS and redox balance as multifaceted players of cross-tolerance: epigenetic and retrograde control of gene expression. J Exp Bot. 69: 3373-3391. *Co-first author
- Ferrer MA, Cimini S, López-Orenes A, Calderón AA, De Gara L. 2018. Differential Pb tolerance in metallicous and non-metallicolous Zygophyllum fabago populations involves the strengthening of the antioxidative pathways. Environ Exp Bot. 150:141-151.
- Cimini S, Ronci MB, Barizza E, de Pinto MC, Locato V, Lo Schiavo F, De Gara L. 2018. Plant Cell Cultures as Model Systems to Study Programmed Cell Death. Methods Mol Biol. 1743:173-186.
- Location V, Cimini S, De Gara L. 2017. Glutathione in plant growth, development and stress tolerance, Springer, Chap. 6 Glutathione as a key player in plant abiotic stress responses and tolerance. 127-145.
- Cimini S, Di Paola L, Giuliani A, Ridolfi A, De Gara L. GH32 family activity: a topological approach through protein contact networks. Plant Mol Biol. 2016.
- Locato V, Uzal EN, Cimini S, Zonno MC, Evidente A, Micera A, Foyer CH, De Gara L. Low concentrations of the toxin ophiobolin A lead to an arrest of the cell cycle and alter the intracellular partitioning of glutathione between the nuclei and cytoplasm. J Exp Bot. 66: 2991-3000, 2015.
- Cimini S*, Locato V*, Vergauwen R*, Paradiso A, Cecchini C, Vandenpoel L, Verspreet J, Courtin CM, D'Egidio MG, Van den Ende W, De Gara L. Fructan biosynthesis and degradation as part of plant metabolism controlling sugar fluxes during durum wheat kernel maturation. Front Plant Sci. 6:89, 2015.
- Verspreet J*, Cimini S*, Vergauwen R, Dornez E, Locato V, Le Roy K, De Gara L, Van den Ende W, Delcour JA, Courtin CM. Fructan metabolism in developing wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) kernels. Plant Cell Physiol. 54:2047-57, 2013.
