ITACA.SB Workshop
11 - 13 February 2026 | Rome, Italy
Crystallographic Quality and Beyond: Structural Biology at the Core of Rational Drug Design
Recent advances in structural biology have transformed our understanding of biomolecular mechanisms, providing a robust foundation for rational drug discovery and design. Despite these breakthroughs, the field continues to face significant challenges in sample preparation, crystallization, and the interpretation of complex structural data.
The workshop will bring together researchers working at the interface of structural biology, biophysics, and medicinal chemistry to discuss current trends and technological innovations. Applicants will have the opportunity to engage with leading scientists and deepen their expertise in structure-based drug design. Selected student talks will also be featured.
Event free of charge, however the registration is mandatory.
➡️➡️➡️ REGISTER HERE – deadline 15th December 2025 (23:59 CET)
Venue:
Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche
Piazzale Aldo Moro, 7
00185 Rome, Italy
MARCONI ROOM (1st floor) <<<<
💰💰💰Travel grants are available for early career participants (PhDs, PostDocs). Applicants should indicate on the registration form if they wish to be considered. ITACA.SB travel grants are allocated on the basis of the quality of the submitted abstract. Selection of awardees is handled directly by the organizers.
Speakers
University of Verona
Uppsala University
Trinity College Dublin
IRCSS San Raffaele Milan
CNR-IBPM Rome
Sapienza University of Rome
Sapienza University of Rome
State University of Milan
CNR-IBPM Rome
CNRS-AFMB Marseille
Diamond Light Source
Institut Pasteur Paris
INRAE-BBF Marseille
Francesca Troilo
CNR-IBPM Rome
Programme
11:00 – 13:00 – Arrivals
13:00 – 14:00 – Lunch
14:00 – 14:15 – Welcome and Opening Remarks – Giancarlo Tria, Research Infrastructure Manager of ITACA.SB
Session 1: from crystals to protein structure and function – chair Andrea Ilari
14:15 – 15:00 – (Keynote) Protein crystallization strategies for structure-based drug design – Terese M. Bergfors
15:00 – 15:30 – Choosing diplomacy over war: ApaH as a promising anti-virulence target in Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections – Giorgio Giardina
15:30 – 16:00 – From protein crystallography to patents of industrial relevance? The case of a fungal redox enzyme active on plant cell wall components – Giuliano Sciara
16:00 – 16:20 – TBC – Selected student talk 1
16:20 – 16:40 – TBC – Selected student talk 2
16:40 – 17:00 – Coffee break
Session 2: from crystals to protein structure II – chair Francesca Troilo
17:00 – 17:30 – Hijacking Leishmania’s ubiquitin-proteasome system through structure-guided PROTAC design – Cécile Exertier
17:30 – 17:50 – TBC – Selected student talk 3
17:50 – 18:10 – TBC – Selected student talk 4
20:00 – SOCIAL DINNER
Session 3: Structural Biology in Disease I – chair Adele Di Matteo
09:30 – 10:15 – (Keynote) Integrating Structural and Biophysical Methods for Smarter Drug Discovery – Marco Mazzorana
10:15 – 10:45 – Allosteric Modulation of Thioredoxin Reductases Reveals Unexpected Druggable Control of Catalytic Machinery – Francesco Angelucci
10:45 – 11:05 – TBC – Selected student talk 5
11:05 – 11:30 – Coffee break
11:30 – 12:00 – Molecular architecture of a malignancy: what BCR structures reveal about chronic lymphocytic leukaemia – Massimo Degano
12:00 – 12:30 – Nuclear Factor 1-X as a therapeutic target in Muscular Dystrophy and Malan Syndrome – Louise Gourlay
12:30 – 12:50 – TBC – Selected student talk 6
12:50 – 13:10 – TBC – Selected student talk 7
13:10 – 14:30 – Lunch
Session 4: Challenges and Advances in Membrane Protein Biology – chair Carmelinda Savino
14:30 – 15:00 – (Keynote) Crystallising membrane proteins in lipidic systems – Martin Caffrey
15:00 – 15:30 – Investigation of σ1 Receptor Ligand Binding Mechanisms and Receptor-Mediated Neuronal Protection – Andrea Ilari
15:30 – 15:50 – TBC – Selected student talk 8
15:50 – 16:10 – TBC – Selected student talk 9
16:10 – 16:30 – Coffee break
16:30 – 18:00 – POSTER SESSION
Session 5: Unraveling Protein Interactions – chair Cécile Exertier
09:00 – 09:45 – (Keynote) Using mass photometry to study the stoichiometry of interactions a new universal approach – Bertrand Raynal
09:45 – 10:15 – TBC – Alessandra Astegno
10:15 – 10:45 – On the nature of monomeric misfolding in multidomain proteins – Stefano Gianni
10:45 – 11:05 – TBC – Selected student talk 10
11:05 – 11:30 – Coffee break
Session 6: Protein Aggregation and Functional Consequences – chair Giancarlo Tria
11:30 – 12:00 – (Keynote) Intrinsic disorder and fibril formation by the Henipavirus W poteins: molecular grammar and functional impact – Sonia Longhi
12:00 – 12:30 – Aggregation and structural destabilization: the Impact of Fragile X Syndrome-Linked Mutations on the KH Domains of FMRP – Francesca Troilo
12:30 – 12:50 – TBC – Selected student talk 11
12:50 – 13:10 – TBC – Selected student talk 12
13:10 – 13:20 – Closing Remarks – Giancarlo Tria, Research Infrastructure Manager of ITACA.SB
13:20 – 14:30 – Lunch
14:30 – Departures
Organizers
CNR-IBPM Rome
CNR-IBPM Rome
CNR-IBPM Rome
CNR-IBPM Rome
Francesca Troilo
CNR-IBPM Rome
Questions? Contact us