🚨 First lipid paper of the year! 🚨

Combining neutron reflectometry and MD simulations, we show how α-fetoprotein interacts with lipid membranes, depending on composition, with implications for biomarker detection and biosensing!

Great start to 2026!
Congrats to the team! 🎉

@sfb1638.bsky.social

A bit late—but better late than never!
Honored to present my work at #EBSA2025 in Rome a few weeks ago.

I first attended EBSA in 2017 in Edinburgh and haven’t missed one since. This year in Rome—my first home—was especially meaningful. 🇮🇹

Already looking forward to Berlin 2027—my new home! 🇩🇪

It was an honor and a real pleasure to be the first speaker at the inaugural @bitsinbio.bsky.social meetup in Berlin!A fantastic opportunity to share my past work and future research directions with such an inspiring and engaged audience!

Huge thanks to @instadeep.bsky.social for making it happen!

FGF2 secretion depends on PI(4,5)P₂ asymmetry across the plasma membrane. Disrupting this asymmetry with exogenous PI(4,5)P₂ blocks FGF2 translocation—an effect that reverses as cells restore asymmetry over time

To quantify FGF2 translocation kinetics, we developed a new single-cell confocal assay. Following doxycycline induction, we removed surface FGF2-GFP with heparin wash and tracked its rapid reappearance—capturing a fresh wave of secretion at different incubation times

If our hypothesis holds, disrupting PI(4,5)P₂ asymmetry in cells should slow FGF2 translocation. To test this, @manpreet0700.bsky.social introduced PI(4,5)P₂ micelles in the media—enriching the outer leaflet and disturbing the natural asymmetry. And yes, it made a difference.

Cells vs. reconstitution systems: Asymmetric PI(4,5)P₂ distribution in living cells accelerates FGF2 translocation—something symmetric GUVs can’t replicate. But when we enzymatically introduced asymmetry into GUVs, the magic finally happened 🪄🎩🐇

FGF2 translocates in 200ms in cells—but takes ~1hr in reconstitution systems. What drives this rapid kinetics in cells? 🏃‍♂️⏩⏩
Many auxiliary factors are missing in reconstituted systems. We pinpoint transbilayer PI(4,5)P₂ asymmetry as a key contributor to efficient membrane translocation.

The Computational Life Science Lab 👩‍💻👨‍💻 is finally up and running! There’s still some cabling to fine-tune, but we’re getting there.

Stay tuned—the wet lab will be opening soon! 🫣😱

#compchem

This is my hometown, Catania! One of the most magical things about the christmas season here is the unique choice it offers. You can either ski on 🌋Etna or swim in the Mediterranean sea 🏊.
How amazing is that?

It’s not just a summer treat—Granita is always in season for Sicilians ☀️🍧