Research Groups
Molecular Biology
Group Leader
Research Interests and Description
Group Members
Arturo Falaschi
ICGEB Distinguished Scientist
With great sadness we bid farewell to our Prof. Arturo Falaschi
Education
Faculty of Medicine, University of Milan, Italy, MD (Hons), 1957Career History
1989-2004, Director-General of the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB).1987-1989, Head of the Trieste Component of the ICGEB.
1982-1989, Director of the Progetto Finalizzato "Ingegneria Genetica" of the Italian National Research Council (CNR).
From 1971, Director of Research of the CNR.
1970-1987, Director of the Istituto di Genetica Biochimica ed Evoluzionistica, CNR., Pavia.
1966, "Libera Docenza" in Molecular Biology.
1965-1969, CNR Researcher, Institute of Genetics, University of Pavia.
1962-1965, Fellow in the Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University, CA, USA, with Prof. A. Kornberg.
1961-1962, Fellow. Department of Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin, USA, with Prof. J. Adler and Prof. H.G. Khorana.
1959-1961, Fellow, University of Ferrara, Italy, with Prof. E. Boeri.
Teaching Activity
2004 - Professor of Molecular Biology, Scuola Normale Superiore SNS, Pisa, Italy.1988 - 2001, Co-ordinator of the Graduate School of Molecular Genetics, International School of Advanced Studies (SISSA), Trieste.
1978 - 1984 Director of the Graduate School of Genetics, University of Pavia.
1966 - 1979, Professor of Molecular Biology at the University of Pavia.
Scientific Activity
The present research activity is articulated along three lines; i) Regulation of human DNA replication at the molecular level: identification of the origins of DNA replication and of the reactions occurring therein that lead to the initiation of bidirectional synthesis; ii) Human DNA helicases: isolation and description of the DNA unwinding enzymes present in the nucleus and identification of their possible role in origin or growing fork function; iii) Methodologies for gene therapy: developing conditions for the production of AAV-based vectors in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae; use of yeast-derived proteins to enhance the frequency of gene targeting in human cells.
Other activities
From 2008, Senior Counsellor, Asia Pacific International Molecular Biology Network, Seoul, KoreaFrom 2006, Editor-in-Chief, HFSP Journal
From 2006, Rector of the International Centre for Science ICS, Trieste, Italy
2005-2007, Executive Director, Asia-Pacific International Molecular Biology Network, Seoul, Korea.
Selected publications
Falaschi, A. Binding of DNA topoisomerases I and II to replication origins. 2009. In: DNA Topoisomerases, Methods in Molecular Biology 582, D.J. Clarke (ed.), Humana Press, Springer Verlag, Heidelberg, Germany, in press
Comelli, L., Marchetti, L., Arosio, D., Riva, S., Abdurashidova, G., Beltram, F., Falaschi A. 2009. The homeotic protein HOXC13 is a member of human DNA replication complexes. Cell Cycle 8, 454-459
Ochem, A.E., Hocine, R., Skopac, D., Falaschi A. 2008. Stimulation of the DNA unwinding activity of human DNA helicase II/Ku by phosphorylation. Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics 470, 1-7
Falaschi, A. 2008. The HSFP Journal one year on: moving forward with a new feature. HSFP Journal 2, 123
Falaschi, A. 2008. Similia similibus: pairing of homologous chromosomes driven by the psychochemical properties of DNA. HSFP Journal 2, 257-261
Abdurashidova, G., Radulescu, S., Sandoval, O., Zahariev, S., Danailov, M.B., Demidovich, A., Santamaria, L., Biamonti, G., Riva, S., Falaschi, A. 2007. Functional interactions of DNA topoisomerases with a human replication origin. EMBO J. 26, 998-1009
Falaschi, A. Changing disciplinary borders into frontiers of progress. Editorial. 2007. HFSP Journal 1, 1-3
Falaschi, A., Abdurashidova, G., Sandoval, O., Radulescu, S., Biamonti, G., Riva, S. 2007. Molecular and structural transactions at human DNA replication origins. Cell Cycle 6, 1705-1712
Falaschi, A., Abdurashidova, G. 2007. Molecular mechanics and DNA replication regulation. HFSP Journal 1, 215-219
Aladjem, M. I., Falaschi A., Kowalski, D. 2006. Eukariotic DNA replication origins. In: DNA replication and human disease. M.L. DePamphilis (ed.), Cold Spring Harbor Press, pp. 31-61
Sheng, C., Arosio, D., Doherty, K.M., Brosh jr, R.M., Falaschi, A., Vindigni, A. 2004. Analysis of the unwinding activity of the dimeric RecQ1 helicase in the presence of human replication protein A. Nucleic Acids Res. 32, 1-13
Stefanovic, D., Stanojcic, S., Vindigni, A., Ochem, A., Falaschi, A. 2003. In vitro protein-DNA interactions at the human lamin B2 replication origin. J. Biol. Chem. 278, 42737-42743
Vindigni, A., Ochem, A., Triolo, G., Falaschi, A. 2001 Identification of human DNA helicase V with the far upstream element-binding protein. Nucleic Acids Res. 29, 1061-1067
Falaschi, A. 2000. Eukaryotic DNA replication: a model for a fixed double replisome. Trends Genet. 16, 88-92
De Stanchina, E., Gabellini, D., Norio, P., Giacca, M., Peverali, F., Riva, S., Falaschi, A., Biamonti, G. 2000. Selection of homeotic proteins for binding to a human DNA replication origin. J. Mol. Biol. 299, 667-680
Abdurashidova, G., Deganuto, M., Klima, R., Riva, S., Biamonti, G., Giacca M., Falaschi A. 2000. Start sites of bidirectional DNA synthesis at the human lamin B2 origin. Science 287, 2023-2026
