Catalogo dei Corsi di studio

CURRICULUM VITÆ
Prof. ROBERTO CONTESTABILE

Born: Roma (Italy), 27 February 1967
Civil Status: married, two daughters
Work telephone number: +39 06 49917575
E-mail: roberto.contestabile@uniroma1.it

EDUCATION
Ph.D. Degree in Biochemistry at the University of Wales, College of Cardiff, Cardiff, UK, September 1997. Final dissertation on "Studies on aspartate aminotransferase and glutamate-1-semialdehyde aminomutase", supervisor Prof. Robert A. John.
Biological Sciences Degree at Sapienza University of Rome, December 1992, final grade of 110/110 cum laude. Dissertation on "Structure-function relationships in serine hydroxymethyltransferase", supervisor Prof. Francesco Bossa.

CURRENT POSITION
Mar. 2022 Permanent position at Sapienza University of Rome, School of Pharmacy and Medicine, Dept of Biochemistry, as Full Professor of Molecular Biology. Habilitation (ASN) for Full Professor Bio/10 and Bio/11. Associated to IBPM and IRET, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche.

PREVIOUS WORK EXPERIENCES, FELLOWSHIPS AND AWARDS
Dec. 2019 Visiting professor at the Belozersky Research Institute of Physico-Chemical Biology, Moscow State University, Russia, invited by Prof. Victoria Bunik.
Dec. 2018 Visiting professor at the Belozersky Research Institute of Physico-Chemical Biology, Moscow State University, Russia, invited by Prof. Victoria Bunik.
Jul. 2015 Visiting professor at the Department of chemistry, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, invited by Prof. Jörg Stetefeld.
2010-2022 Permanent position at Sapienza University of Rome, School of Pharmacy and Medicine, Dept of Biochemistry, as Associate Professor of Biochemistry.
2001-2010 Permanent position at Sapienza University of Rome, School of Natural Sciences, Physics and Mathematics, Dept of Biochemistry, as Researcher.
Sep. 2002 Visiting researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany, invited by Prof. Rudolf Thauer for a project on Catalytic and Thermodynamic Properties of Tetrahydromethanopterin-dependent Serine Hydroxymethyltransferase from Methanococcus jannaschii.
Feb. 2001 Visiting researcher at the Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA, invited by Prof. Verne Schirch to work on the catalytic mechanism of threonine aldolase.
Jan. 2000 Visiting researcher at the Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA, invited by Prof. Verne Schirch to work on the catalytic mechanism of serine hydroxymethyltransferase.
1999-2000 Postdoctoral fellowship (1 years) from Pasteur Institute- Cenci Bolognetti Foundation to work on the project Glutamate-1-semialdehyde aminomutase: a potential target of antibacterial drugs .
Oct. 1998 Short-term contract (4 months) from the Dept. of Biochemical Sciences, Sapienza Università di Roma, to work on the Production and characterization of site-specific mutant forms of vitamin B6-dependent enzymes .
1997-1998 Postdoctoral fellowship (1 year) from the Italian National Research Council (CNR) to work on the project Origin of substrate specificity in glutamate semialdehyde-1-aminomutase: a key enzyme in chlorophyll biosynthesis .
Apr. 1996 Award for the best oral presentation at the Annual Meeting of Ph.D. students organized by the British Biochemical Society at the University of Exeter.
1995-1997 Research Assistant position at University of Wales, College of Cardiff, to work on a project supported by the British Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council and concerning the catalytic mechanism of glutamate-1-semialdehyde aminomutase.

RESEARCH INTERESTS
At present, my interest is mainly focused on the mechanism of regulation of vitamin B6 metabolism at the enzyme and transcriptional levels, in humans and bacteria. The understanding of the molecular bases of diseases caused by defects of vitamin B6 metabolism is also a goal of my research activity. In recent years, I dedicated my attention to the role of serine hydroxymethyltransferase in the metabolic reprogramming of cancer cells and as chemotherapy target. Lately, I have been involved in a project concerning the use of vitamin B6-dependent enzymes as tools in the biosynthesis of unnatural amino acids and their intracellular incorporation in proteins and peptides.

FUNDINGS AND GRANTS
Principal Investigator of a 3-year Research Grant funded by Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti-Istituto Pasteur entitled Role and mechanism of action of pyridoxal 5 -phosphate carrier proteins in vitamin B6 metabolism (three years funding, 2018-2020);
Principal Investigator of a 1-year Research Grant funded by Sapienza, University of Rome entitled Structural and functional role of lysine residues in Escherichia coli YggS, a pivotal regulatory component of vitamin B6 metabolism (2021-2022);
Principal Investigator of a 1-year Research Grant funded by Sapienza, University of Rome entitled Studies on the role of pyridoxine 5'-phosphate oxidase in vitamin B6 homeostasis (2020-2021);
Principal Investigator of a 1-year Research Grant funded by Sapienza, University of Rome entitled Role and mechanism of action of the human pyridoxal 5'-phosphate-binding protein (PLP-BP) in vitamin B6 metabolism. Molecular basis of PLP-BP-dependent epilepsy (2019-2020);
Participant of a 5-year project funded by AIRC (Italian Association for Cancer Research) on Dissecting Serine Hydroxymethyltransferase functions to target lung cancer metabolic reprogramming (2020-2024).
Participant of a 5-year project funded by AIRC (Italian Association for Cancer Research) on A Structure-guided Approach to Target the Aurora-A/N-Myc complex in MYCN-amplified Neuroblastoma (2019-2023).
Principal Investigator of a 3-year Research Grant funded by Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti-Istituto Pasteur entitled Regulation of vitamin B6 metabolism and bioavailability in Eubacteria (three years funding, 2018-2020);
Principal Investigator of a 1-year Research Grant funded by Sapienza, University of Rome entitled Determining the identity of the missing enzyme in human carnitine biosynthetic pathway (2017-2018);
Participant of a 3-year project funded by AIRC (Italian Association for Cancer Research) on Serine hydroxymethyltransferase as potential target for anticancer therapies (2016-2018);
Participant of a 2-year project funded by the Italian Regione Lazio (FILAS RU-2014-1020) entitled Platform of a eukaryote cell system for the expression of heterologous proteins and for the toxicological screening of bioactive, environmental and alimentary interfering substances (2014-2015);
Participant of a 3-year project funded by AIRC (Italian Association for Cancer Research) on Serine/glycine one-carbon metabolism and cancer: biological role and inhibition of Serine Hydroxymethyltransferase (2013-2015);
Principal Investigator of a 1-year Research Grant funded by Sapienza, University of Rome entitled Mechanism and Regulation of Pyridoxal 5 -Phosphate Biosynthesis and Bioavailability (2011-2012);
Principal Investigator of a 3-year Research Grant funded by Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti-Istituto Pasteur entitled Glutamate semialdehyde aminomutase: a potential target of antibacterial agents (three years funding, 2002-2004);
Principal Investigator of a 1-year Research Grant funded by Sapienza University of Rome Origin of substrate specificity in glutamate semialdehyde-1-aminomutase: a key enzyme in chlorophyll biosynthesis (2001-2002);
Participant of several 2-year research projects PRIN (Progetto di Ricerca di Interesse Nazionale) funded by the Italian Ministry of Scientific Research and University in 2003, 2005, 2007;
Participant of the 2-year research project FIRB (Fondo per gli Investimenti della Ricerca di Base) funded by the Italian Ministry of Scientific Research and University in 2001;
Participant to several scientific research projects funded by School of Sciences at Sapienza Università di Roma from 2001 to 2007;
Participant to several scientific research projects funded by Sapienza Università di Roma from 2001 to present.

TEACHING ACTIVITIES Biochemistry, Biochemical Methods and Enzyme Kinetics in Biochemical Sciences, Biotechnology and Industrial Chemistry Bachelor degrees courses and in the master s degree in Biochemistry. President of the international Master s Degree in Biochemistry.

SPOKEN LANGUAGES Italian, native language; English, proficient; French, basic.

PUBLICATIONS Author of 88 peer-reviewed publications (cited by 2078 documents) on international journals (H-index 26; SCOPUS) and contributor to several scientific books and biochemistry textbooks.