Gabriella Sconzo
Gabriella Sconzo
e-mail:
affiliation: Università di Palermo
research area(s): Cell Biology
Course: Cell Biology
University/Istitution: Università di Palermo
Degree cum laude in Biological Sciences, Palermo University.
CNR felloship. Assistant Professor of Comparative Anatomy. Associated Professor: 1980. EMBO felloship at the "Molecular Biology Institute" of Zurich University: 1983.
Full Professor of Comparative Anatomy and Developmental Biology: 2000 to present
Member of the International Course on sea urchin eggs and embryos as Model Cells ICRO (International Cell Research Organization), 1997 (Or).
Coordinator of the Natural Sciences Degree Course: 2001-2004.
Member of the International Training Course staff of ICRO-UNESCO on "Cellular and molecular technologies in Marine Invertebrates", 2004.
Department vice-head (Cellular and Developmental Biology): 2003-2008.
Member of the Scientific Committee of the "International Marine Centre" (Or), July 2005.
Member of "Cell Stress and Differentiation" table rounds, the Annual meeting of the ABCD Society. Organizer of the 12° "Cellular Stress Meeting" in Palermo: 2001. Lecturer for "Biomedicine lectures" of Interdisciplinary Linceo Centre: 2004.
Member of the scientific committee of International Congress of Cellular and Developmental Biology: in memory of Alberto Monroy, 2006.
Organizer of the 18° "Cellular stress, Survival and Apoptosis Meeting" in Palermo: 2007.
Vice-coordinator of Cell Biology (Cell and Developmental Biology) PhD: 2006 -2008.
Supervisor of PhD courses of Cell Biology (Cell and Developmental Biology), since first cycle in 1986 to present and of Biomedicine applied Biotechnology, XV cycle. Member of the PhD examination committees. Tutor of several PhD students.
Coordinator of Cell Biology (Cell and Developmental Biology) PhD, 2008 to present.
Member of 'Alberto Monroy' Scientific Foundation, 2008 to present.


Recent Research activity:
1). Developmental Biology and Differentiation on the stress response to environmental stress in A) the embryonic model system (sea urchin) and B) stem cells (mouse A6 mesoangioblasts). 2) Study on cell biology of neurodegenerative disease. Current activity: a new strategy to enhance the survival after stem cell delivery and to contrast the oxidative stress produced in inflamed tissues.
Turturici G, Sconzo G, Geraci F. (2011).
Hsp70 and its molecular role in nervous system diseases. Biochem Res Int. 2011; 2011:618127. Epub 2011 Feb 24. PMID: [PubMed - in process] 21403864 Free PMC Article

Aridon P, Geraci F, Turturici G, D'Amelio M, Savettieri G, Sconzo G. (2011).
Protective role of heat shock proteins in Parkinson's disease. Neurodegenerative Disease. 8:155-68. Epub 2011 Jan 5. ISSN: 1660-2854[PubMed - in process] PMID: 21212626

Pinsino A, Turturici G, Sconzo G., Geraci F (2011).
Rapid changes in heat-shock cognate 70 levels, heat-shock cognate phosphorylation state, heat-shock transcription factor, and metal transcription factor activity levels in response to heavy metal exposure during sea urchin embryonic development. Ecotoxicology, 20: 246-254, ISSN: 0963-9292

Candela ME, Geraci F, Turturici G, Taverna S, Albanese I, Sconzo G. (2010).
Membrane vesicles containing matrix metalloproteinase-9 and fibroblast growth factor-2 are released into the extracellular space from mouse mesoangioblast stem cells. Journal of Cellular Physiology 224: 144-151 (ISSN: 0021-9541, doi: 10.1002/jcp.22111)

Turturici G, Geraci F, Candela ME, Cossu G, Giudice G and Sconzo G. (2009).
Hsp70 is required for optimal cell proliferation in mouse A6 mesoangioblast stem cells. Biochem J. 421:193-200. (PMID: 19409., ISSN: 0264-6021)

Carfí-Pavia F, Turturici G, Geraci F, Brucato V, La Carrubba V, Luparello C, Sconzo G. (2009). Porous poly (L-lactic acid) scaffolds are optimal substrates for internal colonization by A6 mesoangioblasts and immunocytochemical analyses. J Bioscience. 34:873-879. (PMID: 20093740) [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

D'Amelio M, Ragonese P, Sconzo G, Aridon P, and Savettieri G (2009).
Parkinson's Disease and Cancer. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1155: 324-334. (ISSN: 0077-8923, doi: 10.1111/j1749-6632.2008.03681.x)

Turturici G, Geraci F, Candela M.E, Giudice G, Gonzalez F and Sconzo G. (2008).
Hsp70 localizes differently from chaperone Hsc70 in mouse mesoangioblasts under physiological growth conditions. Journal of Molecular Histology, 39: 571-578 (ISSN: 1567-2379, doi: 10.1007/s10735-008-9197-7)

Geraci F, Sconzo G and Giudice G. (2007).
Starfish and Xenopus oocyte maturation. Italian Journal of Zoology, 74: 107-115. (ISSN: 1125-0003. doi:10.1080/1120000701.)

Geraci F, Turturici G, Galli D, Cossu G, Giudice G, Sconzo G. (2006).
Stress response in mesoangioblast stem cells. Cell Death and Differentiation, 13: 1057-1063 (ISSN: 1350-9047. doi:10.1038/sj.cdd.4401794.)


No projects are available to students for the current accademic year.