Alessandro.Paiardini@uniroma1.it's picture

Dear students,

due to the spread of the CoVid19 infection, during the AA 2019-2020 most of my lessons will be present as registered tutorials and PowerPoints on the e-learning site of my courses. I also created a group on WhatsApp to clarify any doubt. If you want to be added, send me an email with your name, surname and phone number at alessandro.paiardini@uniroma1.it .

Best

Alessandro

Course Code Year Course - Attendance Bulletin board
STRUCTURE BIOSYNTHESIS AND ANALYSIS OF PROTEINS 1051868 2023/2024
BIOCHEMISTRY 1049377 2023/2024
BIOINFORMATICA E FARMACOLOGIA 1041756 2023/2024
BIOINFORMATICS AND DATA HANDLING 10598567 2023/2024
STRUCTURE BIOSYNTHESIS AND ANALYSIS OF PROTEINS 1051868 2022/2023
BIOINFORMATICA E FARMACOLOGIA 1041756 2022/2023
BIOCHEMISTRY 1049377 2022/2023
BIOINFORMATICS AND DATA HANDLING 10598567 2022/2023
STRUCTURE BIOSYNTHESIS AND ANALYSIS OF PROTEINS 1051868 2021/2022
BIOINFORMATICS AND DATA HANDLING 10598567 2021/2022
BIOINFORMATICA E FARMACOLOGIA 1041756 2021/2022
BIOCHEMISTRY 1049377 2021/2022
STRUCTURE BIOSYNTHESIS AND ANALYSIS OF PROTEINS 1051868 2020/2021
BIOINFORMATICA E FARMACOLOGIA 1041756 2020/2021
BIOCHEMISTRY 1049377 2020/2021
COMPUTATIONAL METHODS IN BIOLOGY 10589662 2019/2020
BIOINFORMATICA E FARMACOLOGIA 1041756 2019/2020
BIOCHEMISTRY 1049377 2019/2020
STRUCTURE BIOSYNTHESIS AND ANALYSIS OF PROTEINS 1051868 2019/2020
BIOINFORMATICA E FARMACOLOGIA 1041756 2018/2019
BIOCHEMISTRY 1049377 2018/2019
STRUCTURE BIOSYNTHESIS AND ANALYSIS OF PROTEINS 1051868 2018/2019
BIOCHEMISTRY 1049377 2017/2018
BIOINFORMATICA E FARMACOLOGIA 1041756 2017/2018
STRUCTURE BIOSYNTHESIS AND ANALYSIS OF PROTEINS 1051868 2017/2018
STRUCTURE BIOSYNTHESIS AND ANALYSIS OF PROTEINS 1051868 2016/2017
COMPUTATIONAL BIOLOGY 1051855 2016/2017
BIOINFORMATICA E FARMACOLOGIA 1041756 2016/2017

Venerdì ore 12:00 Via degli Apuli 9, III piano

Honors
2001 Laurea cum laude in Biology with specialization in Molecular Biology
2005 PhD thesis Molecular Evolution of fold-type-I, PLP-dependent enzymes .
2006 Post Doctoral Fellowship (2 years)
2006 Researcher (Permanent Position) SSD BIO/10 (05/E1)
2007 IT Administration of Biological Sciences and Biochemistry websites
2015 National Scientific Qualification Biochemistry
2015 National Scientific Qualification Molecular Biology
2017 Associate Professor (Permanent Position) SSD BIO/10 (05/E1)

Membership
2013 Member of the scientific committee of the PhD course in Biochemistry
2017 Advisory Board of Marie Curie ITN project (Horizon 2020) grant n° 7721532
2006 Member of the teaching board of the 2nd level Master in Bioinformatics
2015 Dean, Speaker Academy, National Speakers Association

International collaborations
- Prof. Francesca Cutruzzolà (Sapienza University, Italy);
- Prof. Roberto Contestabile (Sapienza University, Italy);
- Prof. Carla Borri Voltattorni (University of Verona, Italy);
- Prof. Andrea Mozzarelli (University of Parma, Italy);
- Prof. Barbara Cellini (University of Perugia, Italy);
- Prof. Mariarita Bertoldi (University of Verona, Italy);
- Prof. Dominici Paola (University of Verona, Italy);
- Prof. Loredana Cappellacci (University of Camerino, Italy);
- Prof. Luca Federici (University of Chieti, Italy);
- Dr. Giulia Guarguaglini (CNR, Italy);
- Dr. Giorgio Pochetti (CNR, Italy);
- Dr. Viviana Caputo (Sapienza University, Italy);
- Dr. Sheena McGowan (Monash University, Australia);
- Prof. Ashley Buckle (Monash University, Australia);
- Prof. Lee. A. McDermott (University of Pittsburgh, USA);
- Prof. David R. Koes (University of Pittsburgh, USA);
- Prof. Chandra L. Tucker (University of Colorado, USA).

Editorships
Editorial board of International Scientific Journals such as: Biomed Research International; The Scientific World Journal; Structural Biology; Dataset Papers in Science; Current Bioinformatics
Special Issue Editor for Biomed Research International ( PLP-dependent enzymes )
Reviewer for several International Scientific Journals (e.g., PLOS ONE, European Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, PCCP, Bioinformatics)
Over 80 peer-reviewed publications

Current Research
Pyridoxal-5 -phosphate dependent enzymes
Anti-malarial drugs targeting PfA-M1 and PfA-M17 aminopeptidases
Small molecules modulating bacterial biofilm in chronic infections
Anti Cancer Drugs
Biography

Dr. Alessandro Paiardini has a consolidated national and international reputation as an expert in Computational Structural Biology and Drug Design. His research unit is interested in many aspects of protein chemistry, including folding, evolution and structure-function relationship of proteins and macromolecular assemblies. In particular, his research interests concern protein interaction with small molecules and inhibitors. Specific binding interactions between small molecules and proteins are of pivotal importance to many biological processes. Since a great number of human diseases results from an alteration of such interactions, it is not surprising that most drugs act by binding to a target protein and modulating its activity and affinity for other ligands. In the past years, a number of protein candidates for the development of therapeutic agents has been the target of his research.
During his career, he undertook a number of studies aimed at understanding at a molecular level the structure/function relationship, ligand binding, catalytic mechanism, evolution, and folding of Pyridoxal-5 -phosphate dependent enzymes. The latter comprise a series of protein targets for the development of therapeutic agents, which were subject of investigation: SHMT (tumors and malaria); Threonine aldolase and Alanine racemase (antimicrobial and antifungal targets); Alanine:glyoxylate aminotransferase (primary hyperoxaluria type I); Cystalysin (adult periodontitis); DDC (Parkinson's desease); GAD65 (Type-1 diabetes).

Malaria is a parasitic disease that remains a global health burden. The ability of the parasite to rapidly develop resistance to therapeutics drives an urgent need for the delivery of new drugs. In collaboration with the research group of Dr. Sheena McGowan (Monash University, Australia), Dr. Paiardini has contributed to the discovery of the most potent in vitro and in vivo inhibitors available so far of the anti-malarial drug targets PfA-M1 and PfA-M17 aminopeptidases, as documented in the publication records.

Dr. Paiardini and his group and collaborators (Prof. Cutruzzolà, Sapienza University) contributed to obtain structure and mechanistic studies on selected enzymes involved in biofilm formation, to date poorly characterized despite their biomedical relevance. Integration of computational and experimental approaches allowed the identification of structural determinants controlling the interaction of selected enzymes with small molecules (such as c-di-GMP, nucleotides and metals) and inhibitors, which were designed and synthesized thanks to fruitful collaborations with medicinal chemists (Prof. Cappellacci, University of Camerino).

In the last years, Dr. Paiardini and his collaborators (Prof. Cutruzzolà, Prof. Contestabile, Sapienza University) focussed on the role of enzymes whose proper function is crucial for healthy cell proliferation. In this ground, he contributed to define the role of SHMT (a studied target for anticancer therapies) protein dynamics upon cofactors, substrates and inhibitors binding. Also, in collaboration with medicinal chemists of Pittsburgh (Prof. McDermott, Dr. Koes), he rationally designed compounds able to inhibit SHMT. Moreover, Dr. Paiardini and his collaborators (Dr. Guarguaglini, CNR) have provided the first Protein-Protein Interaction (PPI) inhibitors of the Aurora-A/TPX2 complex (implicated in the assembly and maintenance of the mitotic spindle), paving the way for the development of new anti-cancer strategies.