Volunteer: Fabiola Vacca
Fabiola is a PhD student of the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Doctoral Programme at the University of Siena and joined Dr. Rappuoli’s research group (Monoclonal Antibody Discovery lab) at Toscana Life Sciences in October 2019. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in Bioscience and Biotechnology from the University of Camerino and later studied Medical Biotechnologies (MSc) at the University of Siena. Her current research is focused on finding therapeutic human monoclonal antibodies against antibiotic-resistant bacteria, like Neisseria gonorrhoeae. She is working specifically on developing high-throughput assays using confocal microscopy, to determine the functionality of antibodies against N. gonorrhoeae. In addition, taking advantage of high-content imaging, she is also studying the interaction between host and pathogen in vitro.
Link to Fabiola’s LinkedIn profile.
Anaerobic Biological Dehalogenation
FEMS Microbiology Ecology is proud to present this latest thematic issue on Anaerobic Biological Dehalogenation. Knowledge on anaerobic microbial dehalogenation has advanced significantly since its first discovery. Understanding of the biochemistry, physiology and ecology of organohalide-respiring bacteria (OHRB) has allowed development of bioremediation technologies for clean-up of contaminated sites. At the same time, a fundamental understanding of the processes, enzymes and organisms involved has allowed to discover new exciting features in biochemistry and microbiology. OHRB are either members of novel bacterial genera or already known ones with other metabolic features indicating the importance of horizontal gene transfer in this anaerobic respiration process. Reductive dehalogenases, thus far discovered, are all corrinoid-containing enzymes revealing unexpected biochemical features of this cofactor normally known to be involved in alkyl-transfer reactions. This special thematic issue shows nicely that there remains still a lot to be discovered regarding anaerobic biological dehalogenation.
