In 1988 Isabella Saggio got her degree at the Department of Genetics and Molecular Biology at the University of Rome La Sapienza. From 1989 to 1990 she was researcher at the Laboratory of Virology of Istituto Superiore di Sanità, and from 1991 to 1994 she was PhD Fellow at the Department of Genetics and Molecular Biology of the University of Rome La Sapienza. From 1995 to 1996 she was EEc postdoctoral fellow at laboratoire des Virus Oncogenes IGR, in Paris, and from 1996 to 2003 she was Assistant Professor at the Department of Genetics and Molecular Biology at the University of Rome La Sapienza. She has been Associate Professor of Genetics and Gene Therapy at University of Rome La Sapienza since 2004. She directs the Viral Vectors and Gene Therapy Unit at the IBCIT and she is also Director of Master in Life science communication at the University La Sapienza of Rome.
Isabella Saggio's main areas of interests are virus-cell interactions and virus- mediated gene transfer.

 

Web site: http://www.saggiolab.it

 

 

Selected publications

 

Caruso P, Burla R, Piersanti S, Cherubini G, Remoli C, Martina Y, Saggio I. Prion expression is activated by Adenovirus 5 infection and affects the adenoviral cycle in human cells.

Virology In press.


Sacchetti B, Funari A, Michienzi S, Di Cesare S, Piersanti S, Saggio I, Tagliafico E, Ferrari S, Robey PG, Riminucci M, Bianco P.
Self-renewing osteoprogenitors in bone marrow sinusoids can organize a hematopoietic microenvironment.
Cell. 2007 Oct 19;131(2):324-36.

Martina Y, Avitabile D, Piersanti S, Cherubini G, Saggio I.
Different modulation of cellular transcription by adenovirus 5, DeltaE1/E3 adenovirus and helper-dependent vectors.
Virus Res. 2007 Dec;130(1-2):71-84.

Benihoud K, Esselin S, Descamps D, Jullienne B, Salone B, Bobé P, Bonardelle D, Connault E, Opolon P, Saggio I, Perricaudet M.
Respective roles of TNF-alpha and IL-6 in the immune response-elicited by adenovirus-mediated gene transfer in mice.
Gene Ther. 2007 Mar;14(6):533-44. Epub 2006 Nov 16.

Cherubini G, Petouchoff T, Grossi M, Piersanti S, Cundari E, Saggio I.
E1B55K-deleted adenovirus (ONYX-015) overrides G1/S and G2/M checkpoints and causes mitotic catastrophe and endoreduplication in p53-proficient normal cells.
Cell Cycle. 2006 Oct;5(19):2244-52.

Piersanti S, Sacchetti B, Funari A, Di Cesare S, Bonci D, Cherubini G, Peschle C, Riminucci M, Bianco P, Saggio I.
Lentiviral transduction of human postnatal skeletal (stromal, mesenchymal) stem cells: in vivo transplantation and gene silencing.
Calcif Tissue Int. 2006 Jun;78(6):372-84.

Piersanti S, Cherubini G, Martina Y, Salone B, Avitabile D, Grosso F, Cundari E, Di Zenzo G, Saggio I.
Mammalian cell transduction and internalization properties of lambda phages displaying the full-length adenoviral penton base or its central domain.
J Mol Med. 2004 Jul;82(7):467-76. Epub 2004 May 19.

Salone B, Martina Y, Piersanti S, Cundari E, Cherubini G, Franqueville L, Failla CM, Boulanger P, Saggio I.
Integrin alpha3beta1 is an alternative cellular receptor for adenovirus serotype 5.
J Virol. 2003 Dec;77(24):13448-54.

Di Giovine M, Salone B, Martina Y, Amati V, Zambruno G, Cundari E, Failla CM, Saggio I.
Binding properties, cell delivery, and gene transfer of adenoviral penton base displaying bacteriophage.
Virology. 2001 Mar 30;282(1):102-12.

Benihoud K, Salone B, Esselin S, Opolon P, Poli V, Di Giovine M, Perricaudet M, Saggio I.
The role of IL-6 in the inflammatory and humoral response to adenoviral vectors.
J Gene Med. 2000 May-Jun;2(3):194-203.

Benihoud K, Saggio I, Opolon P, Salone B, Amiot F, Connault E, Chianale C, Dautry F, Yeh P, Perricaudet M.
Efficient, repeated adenovirus-mediated gene transfer in mice lacking both tumor necrosis factor alpha and lymphotoxin alpha.
J Virol. 1998 Dec;72(12):9514-25.

 

Selected patents

 

Saggio I, Di Giovine M, Salone B, Martina Y.
Chimeric vectors and their use for gene transfer. International application. (W0 02/24934)

Laufer R, Saggio I, Gloaguen I, Di Marco A, Demartis A.
Variants of human ciliary neurotrophic factor (hCNTF) with improved receptor-selectivity, and methodology for their selection. Granted italian and international patent. (WO 98/41625)

Ciliberto G, Saggio I, Savino R, Perricaudet M.
Adenoviral vectors for mutants of human interleukin 6 (hIL-6) with hIL-6 antagonist activity over hIL-6. Pharmaceutical compositions there with and their uses. Granted italian and international patent. (WO 98/13383)

Laufer R, Saggio I.
Variants of human ciliary neurotrophic factor (hCNTF) with improved receptor binding affinity. Granted italian patent.(n. 012878094)

Laufer R, Saggio I.
Method for production of Filamentous phages displaying on the surface of the capsids peptides capable of binding biotin, and Filamentous phages and peptides thus obtained. Granted italian patent. (n. 1261693)