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The University of Insubria CV
The University of Insubria CV
The University of Insubria CV The University of Insubria CV Roberto Valvassori
The University of Insubria CV
 

Contact data

Full Professor
University of Insubria
Department of Structural and Functional Biology
J.H.Dunant 3, 21100 Varese, Italy
Tel: +39 332 421366
Fax:+39 332 421300
E-mail: roberto.valvassori@uninsubria.it
 

Biography

Born in 1945. Degree in biology at the University of Milano (1970). Full professor in Zoology from 1994. Starting from 1990 he promoted and coordinated the teaching and the research activities in the new university settlement of Varese. From 1997 to 2000 head of the Department of Structural and Functional Biology. At present is the Dean of the Faculty of Science of the University of Insubria. His research activities concern the structure and development of the muscle systems in arthropods, annelids and molluscs, the taxonomy and biology of nematomorphs and the study of cellular immune defence systems in invertebrates.

 

Research interests

 One of the goals of my research interests is to understand the mechanisms that underlie angiogenesis and fibroplasia phenomena during wound healing responses by using the leech Hirudo medicinalis as a new in vivo model. It is very important to study the formation of new vessels and extracellular matrix (ECM) in "non-vertebrate" sharing a high degree of similarity with the same processes occurring in humans, both under the structural/functional and biochemical points of view. In addition, the leech, characterised by a relative anatomical simplicity, has the unique advantage of having a virtually avascular muscular body wall allowing unambiguous, clear-cut studies on the angiogenic mechanisms. Angiogenesis and fibroplasia are finely controlled by growth factors and cytokines. In fact during these phenomena cell communication is an important mechanism that involves the transduction of information from one cell to others or from cells to ECM.
A second project addresses the processes which regulate the pathologic alterations induced by parasitoid insects in their hosts: besides their general scientific interest, these studies can lead to the identification of new molecular systems displaying potent and selective insecticide activity.
During oviposition, entomophagous hymenopters can inject in their hosts specific venoms, frequently associated with symbiotic viruses belonging to the polydnaviridae (PDV) family. Both venom and PDV can be a natural source of new agents able to induce marked alterations in the neuroendocrine and immune systems of phytophagous insects, like lepidopterans and aphids. The high specificity of the mechanisms allowing parasites to regulate the physiology of their hosts, strongly suggests that both proteins and genes displaying insecticide activity in these systems can be highly selective. Thus, the general aim of our research is the identification and characterization of genes and proteins displaying selective and specific insecticide activity. Moreover, it must be underlined that the potential insecticides must be characterized by high biosafety and low toxicity towards humans, animals, plants.
A third project is about the development of obliquely striated muscles, a peculiar type of striated muscles, typical of soft-bodied animals. We use the cuttlefish Sepia officinalis as a model system to identify and characterize the molecules involved in the muscle development. In particular the role for MRFs in promoting muscle development (during embryonic development) is suggested by the location and timing of their expression: The first MRF protein detected in cuttlefish tentacle is Myf-5 followed by MyoD. Initially, Myf-5 and MyoD expression is mutually exclusive and later overlaps (even if in different cell types). In addition we focus on the role of Hedghog, and its receptor during muscle fibre differentiation and spatial organization in cuttlefish organogenesis. The proposed activity is of great importance not only to understand the differentiation of obliquely striated muscles but also it is obviously interesting from evolutionary point of view.

 

Teaching experience and appointments

 I teach basic zoology, parasitology , animal biodiversity ad evolution in several undergraduate and graduate courses.
Head of the Department of Structural and Functional Biology from 1997 to 2000
President of the Evaluation Committee of the University of Insubria from 1998 to 2001
Dean of the Faculty of Science of Varese from 2000 at present.
Member of the scientific board of the Italian Zoological Society (UZI)
Member of the teaching board PhD course on “Analysis, management and protection of biodiversity”
 

Representative  publications

 de Eguileor M., Grimaldi A., Tettamanti G., Valvassori R., Cooper E. L. and Lanzavecchia G., 2000, Different types of response against foreign antigens by leech leukocytes. Tissue & Cell, 32: 40-48

de Eguileor M., Giordana B., Leonardi M. G., Grimaldi A., Tettamanti G., Fiandra L., Valvassori R. and Lanzavecchia G., 2000, Integumental amino acid uptake in a carnivorous predator mollusc (Sepia officinalis, Cephalopoda). Tissue & Cell, 32: 389-399

de Eguileor M., Grimaldi A., Tettamanti G., Boselli A., Valvassori R., Cooper E. L. and Lanzavecchia G., 2000. Lipopolysaccharide-dependent induction of leech leukocytes that cross-react with vertebrate cellular differentiation markers. Tissue & Cell, 32: 437-445

de Eguileor M., Grimaldi A., Tettamanti G., Congiu T., Protasoni M., Reguzzoni M., Valvassori R. and Lanzavecchia G., 2001, Ultrastructure and functional versatility of hyrudinean botryoidal tissue. Tissue & Cell, 33: 332-341

de Eguileor M., Grimaldi A., Tettamanti G., Valvassori R., Leonardi M.G., Giordana B., Tremblay E., Digilio M.C. and Pennacchio F., 2001, Larval anatomy and structure of absorbing epithelia in the aphid parasitoid Aphidius ervi Haliday (Hymenoptera, Braconidae). Arthropod Structure & Development, 30: 27-37.

de Eguileor M., Grimaldi A., Tettamanti G., Ferrarese R., Congiu T., Protasoni M., Perletti G., Valvassori R. and Lanzavecchia G., 2001, Hirudo medicinalis: a new model system for testing activators and inhibitors of angiogenesis. Angiogenesis, 4: 299-313.

de Eguileor M., Tettamanti G., Grimaldi A., Ferrarese R., Perletti G., Valvassori R., Cooper E.L. and Lanzavecchia G., 2002, Leech immune responses: contributions and biomedical applications. In: A new model for analyzing antimicrobial peptides with biomedical applications. Eds. Cooper E.L., Beschin A., Biley M.; Nato Science Series: Life and behavioural Sciences. 343: 93-102.

de Eguileor M., Grimaldi A., Tettamanti G., Valvassori R. and Cooper E.L. 2002 State of art for the immune system in leeches. Eds: Legakis A., Sfenthourakis S., Plolymeni R., Thessalou-Legaki M. In: The new panorama of animal evolution. Proc 18th Congr. Zoology pp. 128-133.

de Eguileor M., Tettamanti G., Grimaldi A., Congiu T., Ferrarese R., Perletti G., Valvassori R., Cooper E.L., and Lanzavecchia G., 2003, Leeches: Immune response, angiogenesis and biomedical applications. Current Pharmaceutical Design 9: 133-149.

Perletti G., Marras E., Dondi D., Grimaldi A., Tettamanti G., Valvassori R., de Eguileor M., 2003, Assessment of the biological activity of an improved naked-DNA vector for angiogenesis gene therapy on a non-mammalian model. Inter. J. Mol. Med. 11: 691-696.

Tettamanti G., Grimaldi A., Ferrarese R., Palazzi M., Perletti G., Valvassori R., Cooper E., Lanzavecchia G., de Eguileor M., 2003, Leech responses to tissue transplantation. Tissue & Cell 35: 199-212.

Tettamanti G., Grimaldi A., Valvassori R., Rinaldi L., de Eguileor M., 2003, Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor is involved in neoangiogenesis in Hirudo medicinalis (Annelida, Hirudinea), 2003, Cytokine 22: 168-179.

Grimaldi A., Tettamanti G., Brivio M., Valvassori R., Lanzavecchia G., de Eguileor M., 2004, Differentiation of slow and fast fibers in tentacles of Sepia officinalis. Dev. Growth Diff., 46: 181-193.

de Eguileor M., Tettamanti G., Grimaldi A., Perletti G., Congiu T., Rinaldi L., Valvassori R., 2004, Hirudo medicinalis: avascular tissues for clear-cut angiogenesis studies? Current Pharmaceutical Design 10: 1979-1988.

Tettamanti G., Grimaldi A., Rinaldi L., Arnaboldi F., Congiu T., Valvassori R., de Eguileor M., 2004, The multifunctional role of fibroblasts during wound healing in Hirudo medicinalis (Annelida, Hirudinea). Biology of the Cell 96: 443-456.

Grimaldi A., Tettamanti G., Rinaldi L., Valvassori R., de Eguileor M. 2004, Role of cathepsin b in leech wound healing. Invert. Surv.J. 1: 38-46.

de Eguileor M., Congiu T., Grimaldi A., Perletti G., Raspanti M.,Tettamanti G., Valvassori R. 2004, Collagen reorganization in leech wound healing. Biology of the Cell 97: 557-568.

Ferrarese R., Brivio M., Congiu T., Falabella P., Grimaldi A., Mastore M., Perletti G., Pennacchio F., Sciacca L., Tettamanti G., Valvassori R., de Eguileor M. 2005, Early suppression of immune response in Heliothis virescens larvae by the endophagous parasitoid Toxoneuron nigriceps. Journal Survival Invertebrates 2: 60-68.
 
   
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