Cellular Stress in Health and Disease – Federico Pietrocola's group

In the lab, we investigate how cellular responses to stress (e.g., autophagy, senescence) contribute to organismal ageing and age-associated pathologies.

Part of the Department of Cell and Molecular Biology

Our research

The long-term goal of our research is to implement lifestyle/pharmacological interventions to slow down the ageing process and improve ageing-related phenotypes (e.g., regeneration after injury, chronic inflammation, systemic metabolic alterations).

We currently have three ongoing projects:

  • To develop anti-senescence immunotherapies: We aim to unravel the immunological mechanisms that enable senescent cells to escape immune clearance and accumulate in tissues during ageing, tissue fibrosis and neoplastic transformation. We endeavour to identify ‘druggable’ Senescence Associated Immune Checkpoints (SAICs) molecules to trigger the immune system-mediated elimination of senescent cells.
     
  • To identify metabolic vulnerabilities of senescent cells: We use bulk and single cells metabolomics to define perturbations in metabolic networks that specifically define the senescent state. We are currently focusing on the role of polyamines metabolism in the regulation of the senescent phenotype.
     
  • To discover pharmacological agents able to target multiple hallmarks of ageing:  We deploy high-content fluorescence microscopy to identify food-derived compounds endowed with the capacity to (i) improve cellular proteostasis, (ii) boost mitochondrial function, (iii) limit chronic inflammation, and (iv) selectively kill senescent cells.

Publications

Selected publications

  • Preprint: BIORXIV. 2022
    Marín I; Boix O; García A; Sirois I; Caballe A; Zarzuela E; Ruano I; Attolini CS-O; Prats N; López-Domínguez JA; Kovatcheva M; Garralda E; Muñoz J; Caron E; Abad M; Gros A; Pietrocola F; Serrano M
  • Article: DEVELOPMENT. 2022;149(8):dev200361
    Melendez E; Chondronasiou D; Mosteiro L; Martínez de Villarreal J; Fernández-Alfara M; Lynch CJ; Grimm D; Real FX; Alcamí J; Climent N; Pietrocola F; Serrano M
  • Review: EMBO JOURNAL. 2021;40(19):e108863
    Klionsky DJ; Petroni G; Amaravadi RK; Baehrecke EH; Ballabio A; Boya P; Bravo-San Pedro JM; Cadwell K; Cecconi F; Choi AMK; Choi ME; Chu CT; Codogno P; Colombo MI; Cuervo AM; Deretic V; Dikic I; Elazar Z; Eskelinen E-L; Fimia GM; Gewirtz DA; Green DR; Hansen M; Jäättelä M; Johansen T; Juhász G; Karantza V; Kraft C; Kroemer G; Ktistakis NT; Kumar S; Lopez-Otin C; Macleod KF; Madeo F; Martinez J; Meléndez A; Mizushima N; Münz C; Penninger JM; Perera RM; Piacentini M; Reggiori F; Rubinsztein DC; Ryan KM; Sadoshima J; Santambrogio L; Scorrano L; Simon H-U; Simon AK; Simonsen A; Stolz A; Tavernarakis N; Tooze SA; Yoshimori T; Yuan J; Yue Z; Zhong Q; Galluzzi L; Pietrocola F
  • Review: ADVANCED DRUG DELIVERY REVIEWS. 2021;169:40-50
    Yamazaki T; Bravo-San Pedro JM; Galluzzi L; Kroemer G; Pietrocola F
  • Article: CELL DEATH DISCOVERY. 2020;6(1):129
    Castoldi F; Humeau J; Martins I; Lachkar S; Loew D; Dingli F; Durand S; Enot D; Bossut N; Chery A; Aprahamian F; Demont Y; Opolon P; Signolle N; Sauvat A; Semeraro M; Bezu L; Baracco EE; Vacchelli E; Pol JG; Lévesque S; Bloy N; Sica V; Maiuri MC; Kroemer G; Pietrocola F
  • Article: CELL DEATH AND DIFFERENTIATION. 2020;27(10):2904-2920
    Castoldi F; Hyvönen MT; Durand S; Aprahamian F; Sauvat A; Malik SA; Baracco EE; Vacchelli E; Opolon P; Signolle N; Lefevre D; Bossut N; Eisenberg T; Dammbrueck C; Pendl T; Kremer M; Lachkar S; Einer C; Michalke B; Zischka H; Madeo F; Keinänen TA; Maiuri MC; Pietrocola F; Kroemer G
  • Article: NATURE COMMUNICATIONS. 2019;10(1):4731
    Triana-Martínez F; Picallos-Rabina P; Da Silva-Álvarez S; Pietrocola F; Llanos S; Rodilla V; Soprano E; Pedrosa P; Ferreirós A; Barradas M; Hernández-González F; Lalinde M; Prats N; Bernadó C; González P; Gómez M; Ikonomopoulou MP; Fernández-Marcos PJ; García-Caballero T; Del Pino P; Arribas J; Vidal A; González-Barcia M; Serrano M; Loza MI; Domínguez E; Collado M
  • Article: ONCOGENE. 2019;38(20):3886-3902
    Llanos S; Megias D; Blanco-Aparicio C; Hernández-Encinas E; Rovira M; Pietrocola F; Serrano M
  • Article: CELL REPORTS. 2018;22(9):2395-2407
    Pietrocola F; Castoldi F; Markaki M; Lachkar S; Chen G; Enot DP; Durand S; Bossut N; Tong M; Malik SA; Loos F; Dupont N; Mariño G; Abdelkader N; Madeo F; Maiuri MC; Kroemer R; Codogno P; Sadoshima J; Tavernarakis N; Kroemer G
  • Review: SCIENCE. 2018;359(6374):eaan2788
    Madeo F; Eisenberg T; Pietrocola F; Kroemer G
  • Review: NATURE IMMUNOLOGY. 2017;18(8):843-850
    Zitvogel L; Pietrocola F; Kroemer G
  • Article: AUTOPHAGY. 2017;13(3):567-578
    Pietrocola F; Demont Y; Castoldi F; Enot D; Durand S; Semeraro M; Baracco EE; Pol J; Bravo-San Pedro JM; Bordenave C; Levesque S; Humeau J; Chery A; Métivier D; Madeo F; Maiuri MC; Kroemer G
  • Article: CANCER CELL. 2016;30(1):147-160
    Pietrocola F; Pol J; Vacchelli E; Rao S; Enot DP; Baracco EE; Levesque S; Castoldi F; Jacquelot N; Yamazaki T; Senovilla L; Marino G; Aranda F; Durand S; Sica V; Chery A; Lachkar S; Sigl V; Bloy N; Buque A; Falzoni S; Ryffel B; Apetoh L; Di Virgilio F; Madeo F; Maiuri MC; Zitvogel L; Levine B; Penninger JM; Kroemer G
  • Review: CELL METABOLISM. 2015;21(6):805-821
    Pietrocola F; Galluzzi L; Bravo-San Pedro JM; Madeo F; Kroemer G
  • Article: NATURE REVIEWS DRUG DISCOVERY. 2014;13(10):727-740
    Madeo F; Pietrocola F; Eisenberg T; Kroemer G