INTEGRATING TOPOGRAPHIC AND UNDERWATER MEASUREMENTS FOR COMPREHENSIVE COASTAL AREA INSPECTION: AN INTERDISCIPLINARY APPROACH

The Ph.D. research project focuses on the definition, implementation and validation of a methodology to execute integrated aerial and underwater surveys of coastal areas and harbor infrastructures to develop new services for marinas, public authorities, and blue economic operators. The present thesis work is carried out with an interdisciplinary approach mainly involving geomatics, robotics, ecology and other disciplines to suggest a methodology that may be realistically adopted by sc...

Boosting NAD+ pathways to counteract Doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity

Cancer and cardiovascular diseases are among the main causes of death worldwide. Very powerful drugs have been developed in order to cure cancers, and among them we find anthracyclines, which include Doxorubicin (DOX). However, this chemotherapeutic has important side effects, which limit its usage. DOX’s most prevalent side effect is cardiotoxicity; thus, many efforts have been made to find drugs and therapeutic approaches to counteract it. NAD+ is a fundamental coenzyme for the cell, both ...

Preclinical study testing in-vivo the effect of MSC-derived extracellular vesicles on SOD1G93A mice, as a cell-free therapeutic strategy for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

A Multi-Faceted Approach to Uncover Novel Vulnerabilities in Uveal Melanoma: From Etiology to the Identification of Prognostic Biomarkers.

Background. Uveal Melanoma (UM) is the most common primary intraocular malignancy in adults. Its clinical management, in the metastatic state, remains a significant challenge, characterized by inherent aggressiveness and limited systemic therapeutic options. Despite substantial progress in genomic prognostic stratification, the unpredictable nature of the disease in some patients and the lack of effective treatments underscore the urgent need for a deeper understanding of both etiological fa...

Toward Autonomous Soft-Tissue Minimal Invasive Surgery: Integrating Learning, Reasoning, Perceiving for Adaptive Surgical Robot Autonomy

This thesis investigates the foundations required to achieve adaptive autonomy in soft-tissue surgical robotics. Soft-tissue procedures are defined by continuous, unpredictable anatomical deformation, making autonomous execution dependent on the integration of learned surgical skills, real-time perception, adaptive reasoning, and precise robotic action. To address these challenges, this work develops a unified framework based on four interconnected pillars—Learning, Reasoning, Perceiving, an...

LANCL2 and ERRα Interaction and Functional Collaboration in Cardiomyocytes

Abscisic acid (ABA), a terpenoid phytohormone classically associated with plant stress responses, has emerged as an endogenous mammalian hormone with a conserved role in energy metabolism and immune regulation. In mammals, ABA modulates glucose homeostasis, mitochondrial function, and oxidative metabolism through its receptors, lanthionine synthetase C–like proteins LANCL1 and LANCL2. The orphan nuclear receptor estrogen-related receptor alpha (ERRα) is a master transcriptional regulator of m...

Antibiotic resistance in piedmontese and ligurian dairy production

Background The dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) through the food chain represents a major threat to public health. Dairy products from raw milk containing lactic acid bacteria (LAB) resistant to antimicrobials may serve as vectors for the transfer of resistance to commensal or potentially pathogenic bacteria in the human gut. Objectives This study aimed to investigate the presence of ARGs in dairy products and milk and assess the antibiotic susceptibility of LAB strains ...

The ABA/LANCL1-2 system in ROS regulation in cardiomyocytes and in skeletal muscle differentiation and thermogenesis: evaluation of potential LANCL2 agonists

Abscisic acid (ABA) is an evolutionarily conserved hormone that originated in some of the earliest living organisms, with modern ABA-producing cyanobacteria likely representing their descendants. Its emergence occurred prior to the divergence of the plant and animal kingdoms, and its fundamental role as a signaling molecule mediating cellular responses to environmental stress has been maintained throughout evolution. In mammals, beyond its anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective functions, ABA ...

Design of new molecules as a therapeutic strategy for Cystic Fibrosis

The approval of Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator (CFTR) modulator therapy by global health agencies over the past few decades has fundamentally changed the course of patients affected by Cystic Fibrosis (CF). CFTR is a membrane protein that functions as a chloride channel in epithelial cells. Mutations in the CFTR gene lead to absent or impaired chloride transport across the apical membranes, primarily in the respiratory and glandular epithelia. This defect results in the e...