BioInteractive is a leading provider of free classroom resources and professional development for high school and undergraduate biology educators. We aim to connect students to big ideas in biology, promote engagement through the science practices, and instill awe and wonder about the natural world in order to transform science education into a creative, interdisciplinary endeavor that reflects the excitement of real research. We are part of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), an independent science philanthropy that invests in individuals, institutions, initiatives, and media to advance both human health and our fundamental understanding of biology.

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I am a passionate researcher with a wide-ranging research experience. As an undergraduate student in Italy, I sequenced the sunflower mitochondrial DNA and during my PhD, I characterized thyroid-specific transcription factors. I studied the dopaminergic system during my first postdoctoral experience at the IGBMC in Strasbourg, France. During these early years, I was highly productive. However, my fruitful experiences helped me realize Science is not about publications. The real excitement is to investigate the unknown, to make original discoveries. Research that aims at incremental discoveries may be easier but it is certainly not exciting. I had the opportunity to test myself during my second postdoctoral training (Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, USA). My project was centered on understanding the biological role of inositol pyrophosphates (PP-IPs). In one year I managed to biochemically purify the enzymatic activity from rat brain and to clone the inositol hexakisphosphate kinase (named IP6K), thereby opening a new scientific field. In summer of 2004, I moved to London to establish my independent laboratory. My laboratory mainly studies cell signaling events mediated by PP-IPs and has substantially contributed to the establishment of this class of molecules as fundamental cellular messengers. We initially proposed, and subsequently provided fundamental evidence, that PP-IPs lie at the interface between cell metabolism and cell signaling, thereby playing a key role in regulating cellular energetics. To understand how PP-IPs regulate basic metabolism we have focused our attention on phosphate homeostasis discovering that PP-IPs regulate the metabolism of inorganic polyphosphates (polyP) the linear chain of phosphate. This was an innovative and highly influential concept that we helped to establish. Another strength of my laboratory is based on my strongly believe that the generation of new analytical methods represents a fundamental aspect of scientific innovations, Therefore, my laboratory has contributed a number of technological advances that have been instrumental in propelling PP-IPs into mainstream research. For example, the PP-IPs PAGE analysis allows the detection of these molecules by simple toluidine staining. The new TiO2 based inositol phosphates purification protocol we developed is opening previously unforeseen research opportunities in my lab and elsewhere around the world. Finally, I strongly believe that science is an open enterprise and my laboratory freely shares published and unpublished data, protocols, tools, and reagents. This attitude together with our distinctive theoretical and technical expertise has contributed to the high standing achieved by my research group.

I spent 40 years teaching and researching, and developed a particular interest in education and career development. I chaired the Education Committee and was Careers advisor for the UK Biochemical Society. In these roles, and my work with students at the University of Manchester, I realised how important it is for young scientists to recognise their skills and be able to "sell" themselves to potential employers (and grant awarding bodies). I now run CV support sessions for young scientists on behalf of the FEBS Education Committee, of which I was a founder member.

biochemistry, molecular biology, bioinformatics, molecular visualisation, technology for teaching and learning

My research interests focus on the roles mitochondria play in aspects of eukaryotic life, ranging from their origin, metabolism, biogenesis and role they play in cell death pathways. These are interrogated using biochemical, molecular biology, genetic and cell biology techniques. I incorporate these interests into classes I teach to provide an understanding of practical techniques and also the current literature in the field. I studied biochemistry at the University of Leeds, with an industrial placement at Astra Charnwood, followed by a PhD at the University of Bristol, supervised by Professor Andrew Halestrap, to characterise the molecular composition of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore, with support from MitoKor. My post-doctoral training on the mitochondrial pathway of apoptosis supervised by Dr Doug Green was at the La Jolla Institute of Allergy and Immunology in San Diego, California and St Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. I then was an associate research scientist working in the laboratory of Professor Alexander Tzagoloff at Columbia University in New York to study biogenesis of mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase in budding yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. I held independent positions as assistant professor at the New York Institute of Technology in New York and Staffordshire University in Stoke-on-Trent where I continued my research and taught subjects related to biochemistry, cell biology, genetics and molecular biology. I am now a senior lecturer in biotechnology at Liverpool John Moores University.  I am a strong supporter of scientific communications and outreach to disseminate scientific developments and knowledge to a broader audience with the goal of increasing the general support of the scientific process. I also direct Biomed News, a free biomedical research literature discovery platform that uses machine learning.

I am is a National Teaching Fellow and a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. My innovative practice has been awarded the Royal Society of Biology HE Educator of the Year award 2019 and recognised by my students with the Sheffield Hallam University Inspirational Teaching Award for the last ten years. I actively collaborate to develop and disseminate his own and others teaching practices, working both within his university and across the sector in learning, teaching and assessment groups. Through these activities, I build technology-enhanced learning methods for student engagement in both the classroom and laboratory. Pedagogical publications are centred on student interaction and engagement. My biological research interests combine protein chemistry, cell culture and mass spectrometry to investigate the molecular basis of Parkinson's disease and cancer spheroid models. Studies focus on developing 3D cell culture models and investigating these through proteomics, metabolomics, and imaging technologies.

'FEBS Communications' posts general items from the FEBS Network Team as well as news on FEBS events and other activities.

Atherosclerosis, inflammatory diseases, biomarkers