Mentor Database

Antarctica may be considered as a microbial continent, where all higher organisms are not permanent inhabitants. The extreme climate has lead to the evolution of novel biochemical adaptations and the possibility of indigenous species. In this respect, activities devoted to collection, analysis and description of the microbial biodiversity coming from cold biotopes represent real priorities. Indeed, up to now most of the research efforts have been focused on cold-adapted enzymes and the molecular modifications which allow them to work efficiently at around the water freezing point. My studies are focused on Antarctic micro-organisms, with potential biotechnological applications. The molecular cold adaptation of enzymes involved in the lipid metabolism are investigated. In particular, micro-organisms are screened for the production of esterase/lipase activities. The structure/function relationship of target enzymes are investigated. Other research task is focused on the discovery and pro