Tartaglia, Gian Gaetano

Biography

* October 2014 - ICREA Research Professor *Jan 2013 ERC Starting Grant * May 2010 - Group Leader, Bioinformatics and Genomics Program, Centre for Genomic Regulation, Barcelona (Spain) * November 2011 - Clare Hall Life Member, University of Cambridge (UK) * 2005-2010 - Postdoctoral Fellow, Clare Hall College, Chemistry Department, University of Cambridge (UK) * 2001-2005 - PhD, Biochemistry Department, University of Zurich, Zurich (CH) * 1996-2000 - MPhil Theoretical Physics, Statistical Mechanics, University la Sapienza, Rome (Italy)

Research Interest

My main focus is to understand the role played by RNA molecules in protein networks. Characterizing protein-RNA associations is key to unravel the complexity and functionality of mammalian genomes and will open up therapeutic avenues for the treatment of a broad range of disorders. My research focuses on associations of coding/non-coding RNAs with proteins involved in i) transcriptional and translational regulation (e.g., X-chromosome inactivation) and ii) neurodegenerative diseases (examples include Parkinson’s a-synuclein, Alzheimer’s disease amyloid protein APP, TDP-43 and FUS). I aim to discover the involvement of RNA molecules in regulatory networks controlling protein production. More specifically, I am interested in understanding mechanisms whose alteration lead to aberrant aggregation. We have observed that interaction between proteins and their cognate mRNAs (autogenous associations) induce feedback loops that are crucial in protein homeostasis. In addition to amyloid aggregates, we study the physico-chemical principles leading to formation of protein-RNA granules.