Laura Ballerini

Biography

Laura Ballerini graduated (MD) at the Università di Firenze, Italy in 1988. She was a Post-doc at UCL from 1991 and later became assistant professor in Physiology at the Biophysics Sector of the International School for Advanced Studies (SISSA-ISAS) of Trieste, Italy in 1995. In 2012 LB became full professor in Physiology at the Università di Trieste, Italy and since January 2016 is full professor at SISSA. She has been working for more than 15 years on the physiology of spinal cord neurons/ networks and she has vast experience in using a variety of experimental electrophysiological techniques and in vitro model systems. LB has provided important contribution to the understanding of spinal network physiology, plasticity and development. Recently, LB has been working on the interactions between living neurons and micro-nano fabricated substrates or bioactive-composite containing carbon nanotubes. She demonstrated that carbon nanotubes substrates boost neuronal network activity by enhancing neuronal and synaptic performance. The scientific strategy at the core LB research activity is the convergence between nanotechnology, chemistry and neurobiology. Such convergence, beyond helping understand the functioning and malfunctioning of the brain, can stimulate further research in this area and may ultimately lead to a new generation of nanomedicine applications in neurology.

Research Interest

Mechanisms governing the interface between carbon based growth substrates and neurons, Nanostructured bio-synthetic scaffolds and spinal networks, Growing neuronal networks with controlled 3D organization, Graphene based nanomaterials and excitable cells, Molecular neuroscience of motoneuron disease: insights into pathology and protection mechanisms.