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.
REGISTRATION CLOSED – for late registration, please contact info@itaca-sb.it
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
Yokohama City University
Francesca Troilo
CNR-IBPM Rome
Programme
13:00 – 14:00 – Arrivals
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 – Crystal structures of human histone deacetylase 8 in complex with novel hydroxamic acid inhibitors – Marta Palerma ( selected student talk)
16:20 – 16:40 – Crystal structure of Kunitz-type trypsin inhibitor: Entomotoxic effect of native and encapsulated protein targeting gut trypsin of Tribolium castaneum Herbst – Sohaib Mehmood (selected student talk)
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 – Targeting Cryptosporidium Thioredoxin Reductase: Structural and Mechanistic Basis for Selective Gold-Based Inhibition – Federica Gabriele (selected student talk)
20:00 – SOCIAL DINNER
Session 3: Structural Biology in Disease I – chair Carmelinda Savino
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 – Structural and functional characterization of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Rv2514c-Rv2515c a VapBC52 toxin–antitoxin system – Charandeep Singh ( selected student talk)
11:05 – 11:30 – Coffee break
Session 4: Structural Biology in Disease II – chair Linda Celeste Montemiglio
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 – Novel humanized anti-HER3 antibodies: structural characterization and therapeutic activities – Giovanni Bulfaro (selected student talk)
12:50 – 13:10 – Multimodal Profiling of Human Indolethylamine N-Methyltransferase through Biochemical, Biophysical and Computational Approaches – Luca Paluzzi (selected student talk)
13:10 – 14:30 – Lunch
Session 5: Challenges and Advances in Membrane Protein Biology – chair Adele Di Matteo
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 – 16:00 – Lectins as molecular tools – Jeremy Tame
16:00 – 16:30 – Coffee break
16:30 – 18:00 – POSTER SESSION
Session 6: 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 – Structural and regulatory diversity of cystathionine-β-synthase: insights from pathogen enzymes – Alessandra Astegno
10:15 – 10:45 – On the nature of monomeric misfolding in multidomain proteins – Stefano Gianni
10:45 – 11:05 – Isothermal Titration Calorimetry: A New Frontier in Viral Protease Inhibition and Drug Discovery – Sofia Ranieri (selected student talk)
11:05 – 11:30 – Coffee break
Session 7: Unraveling Protein Interactions – 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 – Mechanisms of Sigma1 Receptor oligomerization upon agonist/antagonist binding and studies on the interaction with its molecular partner BiP – Vittorio Brufani (selected student talk)
12:50 – 13:00 – Closing Remarks – Giancarlo Tria, Research Infrastructure Manager of ITACA.SB
13:00 – 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