Molecular Genetics Institute IGM-CNR, Unit of Bologna  

National Research Council, via di Barbiano 1/10    40136-Bologna (Italy) 

Phone: +39-05163666768 (office); +39-0516366771 (lab) 

Fax: +39-051-4689922

e-mail: delcocoarea.cnr.it 

Web: www.igm.cnr.it 

Educations:

1977-1978: Intership at the Biochemistry Institute of Biological Science,  Bologna University, Italy

1978: Degree in Biological Sciences, Bologna University, Italy 

Employment/training:

1982–1984: CNR Contractor at  Normal and Pathological Cytomorphology Institute/ National Research Council of Italy, Unit of Bologna

1990–Present: CNR Technologist, III Level, since 2007 at the Institute of Molecular Genetics, National Research Council of Italy, UOS Bologna. 

Skills:

Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis of nuclei and samples processing applications to TEM ;

Sample collecting procedures for TEM visualization of a few cells , culture monolayers,  cell fractions, small pellets; 

Cryofixation and low-temperature embedding;

Electron microscopy (EM) immunocytochemistry in pre-embedding and post-embedding;

Combined investigation in light and electron microscopy 

Cell  culture of clones, mesenchymal cells and primary fibroblasts, induction to differentiation for preadipocytes, myoblasts and osteoblasts;

Transient exogenous protein expression of c-DNA plasmid constructs on primary cells by electroporation tools;

Immunocytochemistry in light microscopy, immunofluorescence analysis 

Digital images acquisition by Software Nis-elements AR 4.30.02 and image processing;

Protein extraction, SDS Page  and  Western-blot analysis; 

Research interests:

My interest is focused on the transmission electron microscopy of the nucleus, on the investigation of the ultrastructural dynamics of the nuclear chromatin detected in chemically fixed cells,  cryofixed cells, metaphase chromosomes. I’m interested in the apoptosis response to drug chemotherapy in human osteosarcoma cell lines, in AKT kinase and its converging signaling pathway induced by TRAIL cytokine in drug resistant cells.

More recently I’m focused on lamins in chromatin dynamics, cellular differentiation and some rare human diseases with defects of the nuclear envelope proteins, such as muscular dystrophies, lipodystrophies or systemic aging syndromes. I’m focused on the visualization of nuclear proteins by light immunofluorescence and on the analysis of  the modified nuclear phenotypes detected in these laminopathies, as well as phenotypes of the cell nucleus with exogenous expression of mutated Lamin A forms.  I’m focused on the interaction of Lamin A mutated forms with emerin,  their cell nucleus phenotypes  in the muscular laminopathy EDMD1 (Emery-Dreifuss Muscular Dystrophy),  and their involvement in the myogenic differentiation of C2C12 murine myoblasts. 

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