POSITION TITLE

 Researcher

 EDUCATION/TRAINING

       PERSONAL STATEMENT

I’m interested in understanding the functions of proteins which regulate synapses formation and plasticity. I’m particularly interested to understand the role of Shank family of proteins in regulating dendritic spines and synaptic function. I recently contributed to show that Shank and Homer form a mesh-like matrix structure in the PSD that works as an assembly platform for other PSD proteins (Hayashi et al. 2009, Cell 137:159-71). I also demonstrated the role of Shank3 in regulating metabotropic glutamate receptor 5 (mGluR5) expression and signaling at synapses (Verpelli et al. 2011, J Biol Chem. 286:34839-50). I recently started to use hiPSCs to study neuronal developmental diseases such as intellectual disabilities and autism. My interest is also focused in understanding how neuronal activity controls synaptic plasticity. In a recent work I demonstrated the role of the eEF2 kinase (eEF2K) in regulating the dendritic translation of BDNF mRNA (Verpelli, et al., 2010, J Neurosci. 30:5830-42). In the last five years I’m author and co-author of twenty seven peer reviewed papers published in international scientific journals.

POSITION AND HONORS

2012-to present: CNR researcher and group leader at CNR Institute of Neuroscience, Milano

2007-2011: Post-doc position, University of Milano fellowship at the CNR Institute of Neuroscience, Milano

RESEARCH GRANTS

2015-2017 Jerome Lejeune FoundationNeuronal “Dysfunctions Underlying Phelan−McDermid Syndrome and their Rescue by Pharmacological Therapies in Animal Models and Patients' Derived iPS Cells”.

2014-2016 CARIPLO Foundation, Italy. Phenotype characterization of PCDH19 mutations underlying “Epilepsy with Mental Retardation limited to Females” (EFMR) syndrome using in vitro and in vivo models.

SELECTED PEER - REVIEWED PUBLICATION

• Sala C, Vicidomini C, Bigi I, Mossa A, Verpelli C. Shank synaptic scaffold proteins: keys to understanding the pathogenesis of autism and other synaptic disorders. J Neurochem. 2015 Jul 6. doi: 10.1111/jnc.13232.

• Carlessi L, Fusar Poli E, Bechi G, Mantegazza M, Pascucci B, Narciso L, Dogliotti E, Sala C, Verpelli C, Lecis D, Delia D. Functional and molecular defects of hiPSC-derived neurons from patients with ATM deficiency. Cell Death Dis. 2014 Jul 17;5:e1342. doi: 10.1038/cddis.2014.310.
• Heise C, Gardoni F, Culotta L, di Luca M, Verpelli C, Sala C. Elongation factor-2 phosphorylation in dendrites and the regulation of dendritic mRNA translation in neurons. Front Cell Neurosci. 2014 Feb 10;8:35. doi: 10.3389/fncel.2014.00035. eCollection 2014.
• Verpelli C, Schmeisser MJ, Sala C. Spikar speaks to spines and nuclei. J Neurochem. 2014 Feb;128(4):473-5. doi: 10.1111/jnc.12488. Epub 2013 Nov 13.
• Yuan T, Mameli M, O' Connor EC, Dey PN, Verpelli C, Sala C, Perez-Otano I, Lüscher C, Bellone C. Expression of cocaine-evoked synaptic plasticity by GluN3A-containing NMDA receptors. Neuron. 2013 Nov 20;80(4):1025-38. doi: 10.1016/j.neuron.2013.07.050. Epub 2013 Oct 31.
• Toffolo E, Rusconi F, Paganini L, Tortorici M, Pilotto S, Heise C, Verpelli C, Tedeschi G, Maffioli E, Sala C, Mattevi A, Battaglioli E. Phosphorylation of neuronal Lysine-Specific Demethylase 1LSD1/KDM1A impairs transcriptional repression by regulating interaction with CoREST and histone deacetylases HDAC1/2. J Neurochem. 2014 Mar;128(5):603-16. doi: 10.1111/jnc.12457. Epub 2013 Oct 23.
• Verpelli C, Carlessi L, Bechi G, Fusar Poli E, Orellana D, Heise C, Franceschetti S, Mantegazza R, Mantegazza M, Delia D, Sala C. Comparative neuronal differentiation of self-renewing neural progenitor cell lines obtained from human induced pluripotent stem cells. Front Cell Neurosci. 2013 Oct 7;7:175. doi: 10.3389/fncel.2013.00175. eCollection 2013.
• Mameza MG, Dvoretskova E, Bamann M, Hoenck HH, Guler T, Boeckers TM, Schoen M, Verpelli C, Sala C, Barsukov I, Dityatev A, Kreienkamp HJ. SHANK3 mutations associated with autism facilitate ligand binding to the Shank3 Ankyrin repeat region. J Biol Chem. 2013 Jul 29. [Epub ahead of print]
• Verpelli C, Montani C, Vicidomini C, Heise C, Sala C Mutations of the synapse genes and intellectual disability syndromes. Eur J Pharmacol. 2013 Jul 17. pii: S0014-2999(13)00545-1. doi: 10.1016/j.ejphar.2013.07.023. [Epub ahead of print]
• Verpelli C, Galimberti I, Gomez-Mancilla B, Sala C Molecular basis for prospective pharmacological treatment strategies in intellectual disability syndromes. Dev Neurobiol. 2013 May 22. doi: 10.1002/dneu.22093. [Epub ahead of print]
• Ricciardi S, Ungaro F, HambrocK M, Rademacher N, Stefanelli G, Brambilla D, Sessa A, Magagnotti C, Bachi A, Giarda E, Verpelli C, Kilstrup-Nielsen C, Sala C, Kalscheuer VM, Broccoli V. CDKL5 ensures excitatory synapse stability by reinforcing NGL-1-PSD95 interaction in the postsynaptic compartment. Nat Cell Biol, 2012;14(9):911-23.
• Cea V, Sala C, Verpelli C. Antiangiogenic therapy for glioma. J Signal Transduct. 2012;2012:483040. Epub 2012 Jul 8.
• Verpelli C, Schmeisser MJ, Sala C, Boeckers TM Scaffold proteins at the postsynaptic density. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2012;970:29-61.
• Gardoni F, Saraceno C, Malinverno M, Marcello E, Verpelli C, Sala C, Di Luca M. The neuropeptide PACAP38 induces dendritic spine remodeling through ADAM10-N-cadherin signaling pathway. J Cell Sci. 2012 Mar 15;125(Pt 6):1401-6. Epub 2012 Feb 10.
• Verpelli C, Sala C. Molecular and synaptic defects in intellectual disability syndromes. Curr Opin Neurobiol. 2011 Oct 13.
• Verpelli C, Dvoretskova E, Vicidomini C, Rossi F, Chiappalone M, Schoen M, Di Stefano B, Mantegazza R, Broccoli V, Boeckers TM, Dityatev A, Sala C. Importance of shank3 in regulating metabotropic glutamate receptor 5 (mGluR5) expression and signaling at synapses.J Biol Chem. 2011 Jul 27.
• Verpelli C., Bertani G., Cea V., Patti M., Bikfalvi A., Bello L. and Sala C. Anti-angiogenic therapy induces ILK1 up-regulation in a mouse model of glioblastoma. PLoS One. 2010 Oct 29;5(10):e13710.
• Malinverno M, Carta M, Epis R, Marcello E, Verpelli C, Cattabeni F, Sala C, Mulle C, Di Luca M, Gardoni F. Synaptic localization and activity of ADAM10 regulate excitatory synapses through N-Cadherin cleavage. J Neurosci. 2010 Dec 1;30(48):16343-55.
• Pedretti M, Verpelli C, Marlind J, Bertani G, Neri D, Lorenzo Bello. Eradication of human glioblastoma xenografts using temozolomide in combination with the immunocytochine F16-IL2. Br J Cancer. 2010 Sep 7;103(6):827-36. Epub 2010 Aug 24.
• Verpelli C., Piccoli G., Zibetti C., Zanchi A., Gardoni F., Huang K., Brambilla D., Di Luca M., Battaglioli E. and Sala C. Synaptic activity controls dendritic spine morphology by modulating eEF2-dependent BDNF synthesis. J Neurosci. 2010 Apr 28;30(17):5830-42.
• Zibetti C., Adamo A., Binda C., Forneris F., Toffolo E., Verpelli C., Ginelli E., Mattevi A., Sala C. and Battaglioli E. Alternative splicing of the histone demethylase LSD1/KDM1 contributes to the modulation of neurite morphogenesis in the mammalian nervous system. J Neurosci. 2010 Feb 17;30(7):2521-32.
• Han K, Kim MH, Seeburg D, Seo J, Verpelli C, Han S, Chung HS, Ko J, Lee HW, Kim K, Heo WD, Meyer T, Kim H, Sala C, Choi SY, Sheng M, Kim E. Regulated RalBP1 binding to RalA and PSD-95 controls AMPA receptor endocytosis and LTD. PLoS Biol 2009 Sep;7(9):e1000187. Epub 2009 Sep 8.
• Beretta F, Bassani S, Binda E, Verpelli C, Bello L, Galli R, Passafaro M. The GluR2 subunit inhibits proliferation by inactivating Src-MAPK signalling and induces apoptosis by means of caspase 3/6-dependent activation in glioma cells. Eur J Neurosci. 2009 Jul;30(1):25-34. Epub 2009 Jun 25.
• Saidi A, Hagedorn M, Allain N, Verpelli C, Sala C, Bello L, Bikfalvi A, Javerzat S. Combined targeting of interleukin-6 and vascular endothelial growth factor potently inhibits glioma growth and invasiveness. Int J Cancer. 2009 Sep 1;125(5):1054-64.
• Hayashi MK, Tang C, Verpelli C, Narayanan R, Stearns MH, Xu RM, Li H, Sala C, Hayashi Y. The postsynaptic density proteins Homer and Shank form a polymeric network structure. Cell. 2009 Apr 3;137(1):159-71.
• Piccoli G, Verpelli C, Tonna N, Romorini S, Alessio M, Nairn AC, Bachi A, Sala C. Proteomic analysis of activity-dependent synaptic plasticity in hippocampal neurons. J Proteome Res. 2007 Aug;6(8):3203-15. Epub 2007 Jul 10.
• Candiani G, Frigerio M, Viani F,Verpelli C, Sala C, Chiamenti L, Zaffaroni N, Folini M, Sani M, Panzeri W, Zanda M, Dimerizable Redox-Sensitive Triazine-Based Cationic Lipids for in vitro Gene Delivery. ChemMedChem. 2007 Mar 12;2(3):292-296.

BOOKS AND BOOK CHAPTERS

Verpelli C, Schmeisser MJ, Sala C, Boeckers TM. (2012) Scaffold proteins at the postsynaptic density. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2012;970:29-61.