People

Irene Farabella, PI

Giovanni Armenise Career Development Awardees

I received a MSc in Medical Biotechnology from the University of Milano- Bicocca, Italy, in 2008 after a visiting period sponsored by a fellowship from EXTRA PLUS Program financed by Fondazione Cariplo at the Centre for Molecular and Biomolecular Informatics (CMBI), Nijmegen supervised by Prof. Gert Vriend and Prof. Marialuisa Lavitrano. In 2013, I got a PhD sponsored by a Wellcome Trust Funded PhD studentship in Structural Biology working at ISMB (UCL/Birkbeck College, London, UK) under the supervision of Prof. Maya Topf and Prof. Gabriel Waksman. For her postdoc training, I joined Marc Marti-Renom’s lab at the Centre Nacional d’ Anàlisi Genòmica – Centre de Regulació Genòmica (CNAG-CRG), Barcelona as a Juan de la Cierva Incorporación Postdoctoral Fellow. During this time, I also worked as a visiting researcher in the C.-Ting Wu’s lab at Harvard Medical School. In September 2022 I established my Armenise-Harvard Integrative Nuclear Architecture Lab at the Fondazione Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT) in the Center for Human Technologies in Genoa, where we will investigate the 3D genome structural variability at the nanoscale.

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Link to my CV

Chantal Usai

Post Doctoral Researcher

After receiving an MSc in Chemical Science from the University of Genoa, my academic journey led me to a PhD in Physics and Nanoscience, where I specialized in Biophysics. My doctoral research explored chromatin dynamics at the nanoscale, particularly focusing on chromatin organization modifications related to genetic diseases. Now, I'm enthusiastic about contributing to the research on 3D genome organization and chromatin plasticity, leveraging my background in super-resolution microscopy. Beyond academia, I cherish time spent in nature, and I'm passionate about hiking and exploring the beauty of mountains. 

Anja Tolic

Post Doctoral Researcher

I am a researcher with experience in both wet-lab and computational biology. I hold MSc and PhD degrees in molecular biology from the University of Belgrade, Serbia, where I focused on epigenetics. My doctoral research explored the interplay between TET and PARP proteins and their impact on DNA (de)methylation. Additionally, I contributed to projects that implemented CRISPR-based tools for targeted DNA methylation in the contexts of diabetes and cancer research. Over the years, I developed a strong interest in bioinformatics, leading me to pursue an unconventional career path and earn a MSc in Applied Bioinformatics from Cranfield University, UK, in 2024. Joining the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT) and the teams of Dr. Di Giammartino and Dr. Farabella has allowed me to integrate my expertise in epigenetics with computational approaches in order to contribute to research on RNA biology and 3D chromatin structure.

Anthony Palmieri

PhD student, affiliated 

I graduated from the Data Science Master's program at the University of Padua, Italy, with a bachelor's in applied mathematics from the same university. In the Farabella lab, my work revolves around developing and testing clustering algorithms to decipher 3D chromatin structures from point-cloud imaging data obtained via Single Molecule Localization Microscopy.  In October 2024, I started my PhD in the Rinaldi lab at the University of Padua while continuing to collaborate with the Farabella lab. Outside the lab, you'll often find me absorbed in some books, gaming, or just enjoying the outdoors with my army of dogs and cats.

Mattia Roccatello

MSc student

I am a Master's student in Data Science at the University of Padua, currently conducting my thesis research within the Farabella lab. My work focuses on enhancing and optimising the CIMA library, applying advanced algorithmic techniques to improve its performance and the accuracy of automated chromatin structure analysis. By integrating optimisation strategies, I aim to refine data processing pipelines and contribute to the robustness of computational methods for decoding point-cloud imaging data obtained via Single Molecule Localization Microscopy.  Beyond my research, I am passionate about music, exploration, and artistic expression through drawing. Whether analysing data or embracing creativity, I strive to enjoy life in all its dimensions. 

Ivan Piacere

Previous MSc student 

I obtained an MSc in Data Science at the University of Padua; the focus of my work within the Farabella lab is the evaluation of various automated methods for loci identification and decoding in point-cloud chromatin imaging data obtained from Single Molecule Localization Microscopy experiments and the implementation of such methods in CIMA. Before Data Science, I completed a Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science at the same university. In my spare time I like reading, playing tennis and watching 2000's tv shows.