CAMPANELLAB
Our people are at the core of what makes the Mitochondrial Cell Biology and Pharmacology Research Laboratory (Head Michelangelo Campanella) such a unique and fulfilling place to work. We are proud of the diversity of our staff, with all team members contributing their unique skills to the projects we are working on. Together, we have planned and executed some of the most innovative and cutting edge experiments. Find out more about our team members below.
Danilo Faccenda
Postdoctoral Research Associate
Danilo first joined the group in 2010 to undertake the M.Sc. project as part of his Master in Molecular Biotechnology at the University of Bologna. After receiving his master’s degree, he then stayed with the group to complete his PhD in Cell Biology investigating the role of the ATPase inhibitory factor 1 (IF1) in the regulation of mitochondrial bioenergetics and apoptosis in cancer. He then spent two years in Milan to work at the European Institute of Oncology. Currently, Danilo is studying the molecular mechanisms linking alterations in mitochondria-to-nucleus communication to aging and neurodegeneration.
Richard Boulton-Mcdonald
Graduate Student
Richard joined the lab in 2019 as a BBSRC iCASE student. His studentship is focused on the effect of mitochondrial heterogeniety in aging.
Manuel Rigon
Research Assistant
Manuel joined the lab in 2018 as a Rotary Fellow to study the role of contact sites between nucleus and mitochondria in breast cancer treatment resistance.
He is now investigating the mechanisms driving stemness in mesothelioma
tumours to improve treatments.
Daniela Strobbe
Postdoctoral Research Associate
Daniela is investigating the role of the mitochondrial translocator protein (TSPO) in brain and breast cancer cells, focusing on the molecular mechanisms that increase tumour aggressiveness and resistance to therapy.
Brindha Kannan
Graduate Student
Brindha joined the unit in 2021 after completing a BSc in Biotechnology from Monash University. Her research focuses on the comparative cell biology of mito-nuclear interactions in breast cancer.
Sharmitha Rajendrakumar
Management Assistant
Sharmitha joined the IGR unit in France in may 2023 after completing a Master degree in Biomics from the University Paris-Est Créteil. She is supporting the unit by covering the role of clerical and technical assistant.
Tong Guo
PhD in Neuroscience
Tong joined the team in June 2023 in order to realise the objectives and development of the research programme entitled : “Form and Function of the Mitochondrial Retrograde Response”. The project’s goal is to detail the molecular nature and signalling of the points of contact between mitochondria and nucleus in order to characterise the mechanisms which govern the mitochondrial retrograde communication with the nucleus.
The successful candidate will therefore engage with advanced methods of cell biology research to answer fundamental questions on the complexity of mitonuclear interaction.
Eva Sidlauskaite
Postdoctoral Research Assistant
Eva joined as Postdoctoral Researcher in 2022 to characterize the molecular events which determine the physical coupling between mitochondria and nucleus.
Prior to this project, Eva completed three years of postdoctoral training in gene therapy at UCL. Eva’s work as PhD student ( Abertay University) focused on biological phenomena implicated in neuromuscular ageing such as mitochondrial redox signalling.
Sarah Hassan
Research Engineer
Sarah joined the IGR unit in France as a research engineer in November 2023 after PhD in pharmacology from the University of Strasbourg.
Over the past few years, Sarah’s work focused on the development of novel in vitro model generated in 3D culture and Organ-on-chip technology in the aim to reach in vivo tissue complexity.