Maria Rosa Ciriolo       Bandiera-Tricolore-Italiana

ciriolo122x155CURRENT POSITION
Full Professor at the Department of Biology, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Italy.
Head of the section “Biochemistry of aging” Research Center, IRCCS San Raffaele “La Pisana” Rome, Italy.
EDUCATION
1980 University of Rome “La Sapienza” : Doctor of Biology cum laude
1988 University of Yeshiva, New York, NY, USA: Specialization in Pharmacology with honors
CHRONOLOGY OF EMPLOYMENT
1980-1983: Fellow, Inst. of Biochemistry, University of Rome “La Sapienza”, Rome, Italy
1983-1994: Researcher, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Rome, Italy
1986-1988: Research associate, Yeshiva University, New York, NY (USA)
1994-2002: Full Professor, University of Chieti “G. D’Annunzio”, Chieti, Italy
2002- to present: Full Professor, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Rome, Italy
2007- to present: Head of laboratory “Biochemistry of Ageing” IRCCS San Raffaele, Rome, Italy
TEACHING
Biochemistry – Degree Course in Biological Sciences (First Level)
Proteins and Metabolism – Degree Course in Cellular and Molecular Biology (Second Level)
Biochemistry – Degree Course in Pharmacy
Biochemistry of Nutrition – Degree Course in Nutritional Sciences (second level)
Laboratory of Biochemistry – Degree Course in Biological Sciences (First Level)
SOCIETY MEMBERSHIPS
Italian Society of Biochemistry (SIB) and enlisted in National Order of Biologist; Society for Free Radical Research (SFRR); National Interuniversity Consortium I.N.B.B. (Institute National Biostructure and Biosystems); National Health Committee on the evaluation of copper risk assessment; European Cell Death Organization (ECDO); INCT Redoxoma.
EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBER
Genes & Nutrition; The open Nitric Oxide Journal; Frontiers in Cancer Molecular Targets and Therapeutics; MAP Kinase; Trends in Cell & Molecular Biology.
Her expertise as reviewer has been asked by the following International Scientific Journals: Antioxidants & Redox Signaling, Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Autophagy, Biochemical Journal, Biochimica et Biophysica Acta, Cell death & Diseases, Cell Death and Differentiation, Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences, Current Medicinal Chemistry, European Journal of Pharmacology, Experimental Biology and Medicine, Free Radical Biology and Medicine, Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry, Journal of Neurochemistry, Life Sciences, Molecular Carcinogenesis, Molecular nutrition and Food Research, Mutation Research, Nature Chemical Biology, Neurological Sciences, Neuroscience, Pharmacology Research, PLOS ONE.
OTHER SERVICES
- Member of the National board reviewer of the Italian Ministry of Education, Universities and Research;
- Referee for VQR (Evaluation of Research Quality);
- Grant reviewer for “Regione Calabria”, University of Padua; Israel Science Foundation; National Science Center of Poland.
- Guest Editor for Antioxidants & Redox Signaling and International Journal of Cell Biology.
- Task Force Member (Validation Team) of the Halifax Project “Getting to Know Cancer”.
SCIENTIFIC PRODUCTIVITY AND IMPACT
She is author of more than 150 papers on high-ranking journals; 16 book chapters and 110 abstracts of International and National Congresses. (H-index 38, Total citations >3600)

RESEARCH ACTIVITY
- Glutathione and antioxidant enzymes in the control of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species metabolism and their alterations in redox-related pathologies (cancer, degeneration, Type 2 diabetes, atherosclerosis);
- Nitric oxide metabolism and regulation of nitric oxide synthases;
- Interplay between redox and phosphorylative signaling in tumor, neuronal cell death and viral infections;
- Redox signal transduction pathways in cell processes (proliferation, differentiation, autophagy, apoptosis);
- Control of mitochondrial function and turnover (biogenesis/mitophagy);
- De-regulated metabolism (lipid, amino acids, glucose) of cancerous cells;
- Impact of nutrients and nutraceuticals (polyphenols and organosulfur compounds) on redox homeostasis, epigenetics and cellular oxidative metabolism.

GRANTS (last five years)
- CEPID – Centros de Pesquisa, Inovação e Difusão No. 2013/07937-8 Redoxome – Redox Process in Biomedicine (2013-2018).
- MIUR (Italian Ministry of Education, Universities and Research) – PRIN 2009, M8FKBB (National Scientific Coordinator), “Redox regulation of pathways involved in cellular senescence and in the age-related diseases” (2011-2013).
- FAPESP – No. 11/50318-1 Desenvolvimento de Compostos com Interesse Farmacológico ou Medicinal e de Sistemas para seu Transporte, Detecção e Reconhecimento no Meio Biológico (2011-2016).
- AIRC (Italian Association for Cancer Research) – IG – Study of the molecular players that regulate redox state, glucose fuel and autophagy in cancer cell survival (2010-2013).
- Fondazione Roma (Bank Foundation) – Intervention Program to sustain the Biomedical research “Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: Role of Inflammation and Innate Immunity in The Pathogenesis of Endothelial Dysfunction and Atherosclerosis” (2009-2012).
- INCT de Processos Redox em Biomedicina – Redoxoma (Apoio FAPESP/CNPq/MCT) (2009-2014).
- MIUR (Italian Ministry of Education, Universities and Research) – PRIN 2007, 20077S9A32 (National Scientific Coordinator) “Redox mechanisms underlying cell signaling involved in the genesis of oxidative stress-related diseases” (2008-2010).
- Projeto Bilateral, Programa Executivo Brasil-Itália, Processo CNPq 490021/2008-5.Characterization of oxidative damage caused by copper complexes: molecular bases for their antitumor action”(2008).
- Italian Ministry of Health, RF-2009-1546096 “Role of recurrent herpetic infections in neuronal damage” (2007-2009).
- FIRB – (Funding for Basic Research from Italian Ministry of University and Research) – RBIP063ANC_003 “New Neurotrophic and neuroprotective drugs for therapeutic applications in neurosciences: Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis” (2007-2010).
- FAPESP – No. 05/60596-8 Espécies Complexas com Potencial Aplicação em Bioinorgânica, Catálise, Farmacologia e Química Ambiental: concepção, preparação, caracterização e reatividade(2006-2010).

SELECTED PUBBLICATIONS
1. Desideri, E., Filomeni, G. and Ciriolo, M.R.(2012) Glutathione participates in the modulation of starvation-induced autophagy in carcinoma cells. Autophagy 8: 1769-1781.
2. Aquilano, K., Baldelli, S., Pagliei, B., Cannata, S., Rotilio,G. and Ciriolo, M.R.(2012)p53 orchestrates the PGC-1α-mediated antioxidant response upon mild redox and metabolic imbalance. Antiox. Redox Signal. 18: 386-399.
3. Cardaci, S., Rizza, S., Filomeni, G., Bernardini, R., Bertocchi, F., Mattei, M., Paci, M., Rotilio, G. and Ciriolo, M.R.(2012) Glutamine deprivation enhances antitumor activity of 3-bromopyruvate through the stabilization of monocarboxylate transporter-1. Cancer Res. 72:4526-4536.
4. Cardaci, S., Filomeni, G. and Ciriolo, M.R.(2012)Redox implications of AMPK-mediated signal transduction beyond energetic clues. J. Cell Sci. 125: 2115-2125.
5. Filomeni, G., Graziani, I., De Zio, D., Dini, L., Centonze, D., Rotilio, G. and Ciriolo, M.R. (2012) Neuroprotection of kaempferol by autophagy in models of rotenone-mediated acute toxicity: possible implications for Parkinson’s disease. Neurobiology of Aging 33: 767-785.
6. Aquilano, K., Baldelli, S., Cardaci, S., Rotilio, G. and Ciriolo M.R.(2011) Nitric oxide is the primary mediator of cytotoxicity induced by GSH depletion in neuronal cells.J Cell Sci. 124: 1043-1054.
7. Filomeni, G., Desideri, E., Cardaci, S., Piccirillo, S., Graziani, I., Rotilio, G. and Ciriolo, M.R.(2010) Carcinoma cells activate AMP-activated protein kinase-dependent autophagy as survival response to kaempferol-mediated energetic impairment. Autophagy 6: 202-216.
8. Aquilano, K., Vigilanza, P., Filomeni, G., Rotilio, G. and Ciriolo, M.R. (2010) Tau dephosphorylation and microfilaments disruption are upstream events of the anti-proliferative effects of DADS in SH-SY5Y cells. J.Cell.Mol.Med. 14:564-577.
9. Piccirillo,S., Filomeni,G., Brüne,B., Rotilio, G. and Ciriolo, M.R.(2009) Redox mechanisms involved in the selective activation of Nrf2-mediated resistance versus p53-dependent apoptosis in the adenocarcinoma gastric cells AGS. J BiolChem 284: 27721-27733.
10. Vigilanza,P., Aquilano,P., Rotilio,G. and Ciriolo, M.R.(2008) Transient cytoskeletal alterations after SOD1 depletion in neuroblastoma cells. Cell.Mol. Life Sci. 65: 991-1004.
11. Aquilano,K., Vigilanza,P., Rotilio,G. and Ciriolo, M.R.(2006) Mitochondrial damage due to SOD1 deficiency in SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells: a rationale for the redundancy of SOD1. FASEB J. 20: 1683-1685.
12. Filomeni,G., Aquilano,K., Rotilio,G. and Ciriolo, M.R. (2005) Glutathione-related systems and modulation of extracellular signal-regulated kinases are involved in resistance of AGS adenocarcinoma gastric cells to diallyl disulfide-induced apoptosis. Cancer Res. 65, 11735-11742.
13. Ciriolo, M.R. (2005) Redox control of apoptosis. Antiox.Redox Signal 7: 430-433.
14. Filomeni,G., Aquilano,k., Rotilio,G and Ciriolo, M.R. (2003) Reactive oxygen species-dependent c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase/c-Jun signaling cascade mediates neuroblastoma cell death induced by diallyl disulfide. Cancer Res. 63: 5940-5949.
15. Filomeni,G., Rotilio,G. and Ciriolo,M.R. (2002)Glutathione disulfide induces apoptosis of U937 cells by a redox-mediated p38 MAP kinase pathway. FASEB J. 17: 64-66.
16. Angelini,G., Gardella,S., Ardy,M., Ciriolo, M.R., Filomeni,G., Di Trapani,G., Clarke,F., Sitia,R. and Rubartelli,A. (2002) Antigen-presenting dendritic cells provide the reducing extracellular microenvironment required for T lymphocyte activation. Proc.Natl.Acad.Sci. (USA) 99: 1491-1496.
17. Ciriolo, M.R., De Martino,A., Lafavia,E., Rossi,L., Carrì,M.T. and Rotilio,G. (2000) Cu,Zn-superoxide dismutase-dependent apoptosis induced by nitric oxide in neuronal cells. J.Biol.Chem. 275: 5065-5072.
18. Ghibelli,L., Coppola,S., Fanelli,C., Rotilio,G., Civitareale,P., Scovasassi, A.I. and Ciriolo, M.R.(1999) Glutathione depletion causes cytochrome c release even in the absence of cell commitment to apoptosis. FASEB J. 13: 2031-2036.
19. Ghibelli,L., Fanelli,C., Rotilio,G., Lafavia,E., Coppola,S., Colussi,C., Civitareale,P. and Ciriolo, M.R. (1998) Rescue of cellsfromapoptosis by inhibition of active GSH extrusion. FASEB J. 12: 479-486.
20. Ciriolo, M.R.,Palamara,A.T., Incerpi,S., Lafavia,E., Buè,M.C., De Vito,P., Garaci,E. and Rotilio,G. (1997) Loss of GSH, oxidative stress and decrease of intracellular pH as sequential steps in viral infection. J.Biol.Chem. 272: 2700-2708.

RESEARCH GROUP AND CONTACTS
Maria Rosa Ciriolo – Full Professor – ciriolo@bio.uniroma2.it
Katia Aquilano – Researcher – katia.aquilano@uniroma2.it
Giuseppe Filomeni – Researcher – filomeni@uniroma2.it
Enrico Desideri – Staff Scientist – desideri.enrico@fastwebnet.it
Sara Baldelli – Staff Scientist            – sara.baldelli@uniroma2.it
Giuseppina Di Giacomo – Staff Scientist – giuseppinadigiacomo@yahoo.it
Daniele Lettieri Barbato – PhDstudent – daniele.lettieri.barbato@uniroma2.it
Costanza Montagna – PhDstudent – costanza.montagna@libero.it
Giuseppe Tatulli – PhDstudent – giuseppe.tatulli@hotmail.it
Salvatore Rizza – PhDstudent           – salvatoreri@gmail.com
Rolando Vegliante – PhDstudent – veglianterolando@tiscali.it
Patrizia Civitareale – Technician – civitareale@uniroma2.it