Mario Milani

Research staff

Since 2005 I am a CNR researcher. I work on the relationship between structure and function of proteins involved in different human diseases, using various experimental and computational techniques. In particular, I work in expression and purification of recombinant proteins, biophysical and biochemical characterization of purified proteins, production of protein crystals, structural analysis with X-ray crystallography, SAXS and electron microscopy. In addition, I work in in silico docking for the identification of inhibitors to be developed as new drugs and in molecular dynamics simulations.
1998-2002, PhD in Physics at the University of Genoa.
1997-1998, Experimental thesis in Physics, University of Rome "La Sapienza". Vote: 110/110

orcid://0000-0001-6098-3991,

Contact:

- Email mario.milani@ibf.cnr.it
- Phone +39-02-23699540
- Location Milano

Website:

http://users.unimi.it/biolstru/Home.html

Research interests:

- Structural analysis of proteins involved in various human diseases and research of new therapeutic strategies (Principal investigator)
- Towards deciphering ribosome heterogeneity and polyribosome code to understand translational control of gene expression
- Type I BIR inhibitors for the regulation of NF-kB pathway
- Therapeutic effects of retromer stabilization in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
- Yeaz, the resuscitation-promoting factor
- Structural and biochemical bases of the pathogenicity of the Apoptosis Inducing Factor (AIF)
- Translational defects in motor neuron diseases
- Structure-based drug discovery on viral proteins
- Gelsolin physiopathology
- Structure-based drug discovery

Further collaborations:

- Pierfausto Seneci (Università degli studi di Milano)
- Alessandro Aliverti (Università degli studi di Milano)
- Giovanni Bertoni (Università degli studi di Milano)
- Alessandro Marcello (ICGEB, Trieste)
- Oscar Burrone (ICGEB, Trieste)
- Francesca Arnoldi (ICGEB, Trieste)
- Violetta Cecchetti (Università degli studi di Perugia)
- Giuseppe Manfroni (Università degli studi di Perugia)
- Daniele Lecis (Istituto Tumori Milano)
- Daniele dell’Orco (Università degli studi di Verona)
- Leonardo Manzoni (Cnr-Istm)
- Robert Kleta (UCL)

Financial support:

- Telethon 2017-2020: Cone dystrophies and retinal degeneration from protein structures to biological networks. Toward the design of therapeutic molecules. Grant number: GGP16010. Ruolo: partner coordinator.
- Grant Instruct 2018-2019 grant Instruct (https://www.structuralbiology.eu/) "Structural analysis of the interaction between retinal guanylyl cyclase 1 (GC1) and guanylate cyclase activating protein 1 (GCAP1)". Ruolo: PI.

Key publications:

Reichold M, Klootwijk ED, Reinders J, Otto EA, Milani M, Broeker C, et al. (2017) Glycine amidinotransferase (GATM), renal Fanconi syndrome, and kidney failure. J Am Soc Nephrol. 29(7):1849-1858

Tarantino D, Cannalire R, Mastrangelo E, Croci R, Querat G, Barreca ML, Bolognesi M, Manfroni G, Cecchetti V, Milani M (2016) Targeting flavivirus RNA dependent RNA polymerase through a pyridobenzothiazole inhibitor. Antiviral research 134:226-235

Mastrangelo E, Vachette P, Cossu F, Malvezzi F, Bolognesi M, Milani M (2015) The activator of apoptosis Smac-DIABLO acts as a tetramer in solution. Biophysical journal 108:714-723

Tarantino D, Pezzullo M, Mastrangelo E, Croci R, Rohayem J, Robel I, Bolognesi M, Milani M (2014) Naphthalene-sulfonate inhibitors of human norovirus RNA-dependent RNA-polymerase. Antiviral research 102:23-28

Mastrangelo E, Pezzullo M, De Burghgraeve T, Kaptein S, Pastorino B, Dallmeier K, de Lamballerie X, Neyts J, Hanson AM, Frick DN, Bolognesi M, Milani M (2012) Ivermectin is a potent inhibitor of flavivirus replication specifically targeting NS3 helicase activity: new prospects for an old drug. Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy 67(8):1884-1894