Greta Caprara, PhD

Education and previous professional experiences

After my bachelor’s degree in Biology (110/110 cum laude), at the Università degli Studi di Milano, I overcame the State Exam and enrolled to the National Biologist Register (Registration number: AA_049758).

To further develop my education and science skills, I moved to the European Institute of Oncology (IEO), to work under the supervision of Prof. Kristian Helin. Here, I first earned an international PhD in Molecular and Cellular Biology (Open University PhD Program), then, I spent some more years, as a Postdoc, dissecting the role of genes and molecular pathways involved in cell cycle control and tumor suppression.

Related publications

  1. Caprara G, Zamponi R, Melixetian M and Helin K. Isolation and characterization of DUSP11, a novel p53 target gene. Journal of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, 2009. 
  2. Ballabeni A, Zamponi R, Caprara G, Melixetian M, Bossi S, Masiero L and Helin K. Human CDT1 Associates with CDC7 and Recruits CDC45 to Chromatin during S Phase. J Biol Chem, 2009. 
  3. Moroni MC*, Hickman ES*, Lazzerini Denchi E, Caprara G, Colli E, Cecconi F, Müller H and Helin K. Apaf-1 is a transcriptional target for E2F and p53. Nature Cell Biology, 2001. * equal contribution. 

In order to increase my knowledge on immune-related pathways in cancer, I moved to Prof. Gioacchino Natoli's group, where, first as Postdoc and then as Senior Scientist, I opened a new field of research in the lab, developing an autonomous project aimed at understanding the role of specific enzymes in the control of macrophages antimicrobial response.

Related publications

  1. Caprara G, Prosperini E, Piccolo V, Sigismondo G, Melacarne A, Cuomo A, Boothby M, Rescigno M, Bonaldi T and Natoli G. PARP14 Controls the Nuclear Accumulation of a Subset of Type I IFN–Inducible Proteins. The Journal of Immunology, 2018. 
  2. Giorgetti L, Siggers T, Tiana G, Caprara G, Notarbartolo S, Corona T, Pasparakis M, Milani P, Bulyk ML and Natoli G. 2010. Noncooperative Interactions between Transcription Factors and Clustered DNA Binding Sites Enable Graded Transcriptional Responses to Environmental Inputs. Molecular Cell, 2010.

Giorgetti L, Siggers T, Yaeger S, Tiana G, Caprara G, Milani P, Bulyk ML and Natoli G. A Graded Response of a Transcription Factor to Increasing Doses of External Stimuli: A Thermodynamic Framework Describing the Behavior of NF-kB. Biophysical Journal. Vol.96, Issue 3: 304a-305a, 2009.

3rd prize poster award 
Awarded at: “PARP 2010 18th International Conference on ADP-ribose metabolism”, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland. August 18-21 2010.

Along with my bench research work, I’ve always had a strong interest in sport and nutrition fields.

Thus, I pursued my studies in that direction, earning a second level Master’s Degree in Human Nutrition and Dietetics, from the Università Politecnica delle Marche, and a Sports Nutrition Degree (SANIS, Scuola di Nutrizione e Integrazione nello Sport).

Current employment

Since mid-2018, I’ve been working, as a researcher and nutritionist, in the Smartfood Program, the Translational Research Program in Nutrition Science and Communication of IEO, which is mainly focused on investigating the effects on health of particular foods and dietetic habits and in promoting a healthy lifestyle, through the dissemination of scientific and multimedia contents.

Besides my participation to the design, implementation and content writing of the Smartfood website, and the creation of the Smartfood Newsletter, I am involved in any activity of the program, but I mainly contribute to the development and further improvement of topics (articles, website contents, seminars, etc.) and the management of tasks related to my major expertise, meaning:

  • SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH (from basic to epidemiological research)
  • CHRONIC DISEASES PREVENTION
  • SPORT NUTRITION.

Some of my articles and contents

Most relevant publications related to nutrition

  • Greta Caprara. The Mediterranean Diet. Chapter in the book: Nutritional Health: Strategies for Disease Prevention, 4th ed.; Temple, N.J., Wilson, T., Jacobs, D.R., Jr., Bray, G.A., Eds.; Humana Press (Springer): New York, NY, USA, 2023; pp. 201-213.
  • Greta Caprara e Maurizio Antonio Battino. Dieta e Longevità: Influenza di Specifiche Tipologie Dietetiche sulla Qualità della Vita. 2018.
    Appendice all’interno dei testi sviluppati per il Master Internazionale di Secondo Livello in Nutrizione e Dietetica, promosso dall’Università Politecnica delle Marche, Ancona.

Workshop, conference, and course speaker with Smartfood

Webinar: “Raccomandazioni Nutrizionali per la Prevenzione Oncologica”, April 2022, Istituto Statale di Istruzione Secondaria Superiore (I.S.S.S.) "G.D’ANNUNZIO - M.FABIANI" Gorizia.

Seminar "Alimentazione e salute" aimed at the workplace health promotion. ALMAG SpA, Roncadelle (Brescia), October 2022.

Altroconsumo, FestivalFuturo Strabene. “Alimentazione e salute: quante ne sai?” Workshop by Smartfood, 29 September 2019, Milano.

  • As a part of Smartfood collaboration with A2A (2021), aimed at the workplace health promotion, I have held, in 2021, the following Webinars for the employees:
    “La Dieta Mediterranea per la Protezione della Salute Cardiovascolare”.
    “Alimentazione e Sport”.
  • As a part of Smartfood collaboration with A2A (2019), aimed at the workplace health promotion, I have held, together with my colleagues, a training workshop for canteen employees, on “Nutrition and Health” (November 2019).

As a part of Smartfood collaboration with COOP Lombardia, I have held the following seminars for both consumers and employees:

  • Training workshops (3) for employees, on healthy diet (2019, Milano).
  • “Stare in Salute, Nutrizione e Attività Fisica. Dieta Mediterranea: un patrimonio di salute”, 26 September 2019, Pavia.
  • “Dalla Scienza ai Fornelli: mettere in pratica le raccomandazioni internazionali”, 24 November 2018, Milano and 18 April 2019, Treviglio.

CUCINA in ONCOLOGIA, October 2018, “European Institute of Oncology, Department of Experimental Oncology”, Via Adamello 16, Milano.

Chefs and kitchen staff training and awareness course aimed at depicting the key role of a healthy diet in cancer prevention and explaining how to support cancer patients with healthy cooking.

Smartfood proposal presentation for a healthy break, during scientific meetings, at the conference: L’ANZIANO FRAGILE: DAI MECCANISMI MOLECOLARI ALLA PRESA IN CARICO CLINICA. 01 March 2019. IRCCS MultiMedica, Sesto San Giovanni (Milano).

Webinar “Alimentazione Sana e Consapevole”, April 2021, SISM Novara.

Multimedia contents

Other professional activities related to nutrition

Besides my scientific and dissemination activity within the Smartfood Program, I collaborate with university, public and private parties, newspapers and magazines in disseminating nutrition research findings and knowledge.

Since June 2019, I’ve been giving academic training lectures in English (Elective courses - 8 hours), to students in Medicine and Surgery at Humanitas University, called “Introduction to Nutritional Biochemistry”.

Those lessons are part of the Course in Biochemistry, held by Professor Antonio Inforzato (Academic Years: 2018-2019, 2019-2020, 2020-2021, 2021-2022).

  • Conference “Mantenere il cervello attivo nell'invecchiamento. Il ruolo dei fattori cognitivi, motori e alimentari nel contrastare il declino legato all’età”. 04 May 2023, PALAZZO ALBANI, Aula B3, Via Timoteo Viti 10, Urbino. Event organized by the Dipartimento di Studi Umanistici (DISTUM) of the Università di Urbino Carlo Bo. Title of the seminar: “Alimentazione e invecchiamento attivo”.
  • Conference “Carcinoma mammario: quali novità per il 2022? Saper leggere uno studio clinico per migliorare la pratica clinica”, Progetto Canoa 12th edition, 19 March 2022, Ospedaletto di Pescantina, Verona. Sponsorship AIOM (Associazione Italiana di Oncologia Medica), ROPI (Rete Oncologica Pazienti Italia) and SICO (Società Italiana di Chirurgia Oncologica). Session III: Le terapie integrative durante e dopo il trattamento per carcinoma mammario: oggi parliamo di alimentazione e attività fisica. Title of the seminar: “Tumore al seno e alimentazione: evidenze scientifiche, falsi miti e consapevolezza dei pazienti”.
  • Webinar “Pandemia, Alimentazione e Stile di Vita: consigli per una dieta sana nel 2020/2021”, December 2020, Segretariato Italiano Studenti in Medicina (SISM), Milano.
  • ConferenceÈ tempo di Vita”, 05 July 2019, L’Aquila, by Novartis in collaboration with Salute Donna, A.N.D.O.S. and Società Italiana di Psico-Oncologia (SIPO).
    Title of the seminar: “Tumore al seno, alimentazione e stili di vita: evidenze scientifiche e falsi miti”.

I collaborate with journalists in writing websites, newspapers and magazines' articles (Univadis from Medscape, Airone and Natural Style, Cairo Editore).

 

Besides, I write website/blog articles.

Peer-reviewing activity (evaluation of academic paper's suitability for publication) for scientific journal, such as:

Other activities related to sports

  • 2018. Federazione Italiana Fitness (FIF) and European Fitness Association (EFA). Certificate of Pilates Cadillac Instructor.
  • 2017. Diploma Nazionale di Qualifica Tecnica ASI. Attività di Ginnastica Finalizzata alla Salute e al Fitness - Pilates.
  • 2016. Federazione Italiana Fitness (FIF) and European Fitness Association (EFA). Certificate of Pilates Matwork Instructor.
  • 2016. Federazione Italiana Fitness (FIF) and European Fitness Association (EFA). Certificate of Pilates Props Instructor.
  • 2016. Federazione Italiana Fitness (FIF). Attestato di partecipazione al Workshop in Standing Pilates.
  • 2016. Federazione Italiana Fitness (FIF). Attestato di partecipazione al Workshop in Power Stretch 2.0.

Instructor of Power Stretching (September 2016 - June 2017) at the amateur sports association “Fight4Fun”, Rozzano, Milano.

Continuous professional training

  • Interactive course Design Thinking: Approaches for Chronic Disease Management. Virtual EMBL Course. 04-10 December 2020.
  • European Sport Nutrition Society (ESNS) Digital Meeting 2020 Update in Sport Nutrition, 28 November 2020.
  • Our House is Burning: Scientific and Societal Responses to Mass Extinction. Virtual EMBL Course. 04-05 November 2020.
  • Nutrimedifor courses, May - July 2020:
  1. Intervento Nutrizionale per il Diabete e Conta dei Carboidrati - Aspetti Teorici e Pratici
  2. Intervento Nutrizionale in Gravidanza e Allattamento - Aspetti Teorici e Pratici
  3. L’Alimentazione dell’Anziano, Osteoporosi e Terapia Nutrizionale - Aspetti Teorici e Pratici
  4. La Terapia Nutrizionale nelle Allergie ed Intolleranze Alimentari nel Bambino e nell’Adulto - Aspetti Teorici e Pratici
  5. La Terapia Nutrizionale nelle Principali Patologie Gastroenterologiche - Aspetti Teorici e Pratici.
  • Interazioni alimenti e integratori con i farmaci e lo stato di salute, August 2022.
  • Nutrizione e disturbi del sonno, July 2022.
  • Il ruolo della nutrizione negli sport di squadra, June 2022.
  • Dieta chetogena nel paziente con obesità e comorbidità obesità-associate: management nel setting ambulatoriale, November 2021.
  • Efficienza metabolica, October 2021.
  • Uric acid: from molecular mechanisms to clinical perspectives, June 2021.
  • Attività antivirale delle proteine del siero di latte, May 2021.
  • La promozione della salute e la valutazione di impatto sanitario (VIS), February 2021.
  • Il sistema integrato della sicurezza alimentare, January 2021.
  • Le interazioni farmaci-alimenti, November 2020.
  • Il ruolo del nutrizionista nel calcio, October 2020.
  • Inquinanti ambientali e malattie cardiovascolari, September 2020.
  • Colesterolo, malattie cardiovascolari e nuove linee guida: c’è ancora spazio per una sana alimentazione?, June 2020.
  • Antiossidanti e sport, May 2020.
  • Diabete e patologia cardiovascolare, March 2020.
  • La nutrizione oncologica, February 2020.
  • Vitamina D e malattie cardiovascolari: mito o realtà?, January 2020.
  • L’asse cuore e psiche è anche questione di dieta?, July 2019.
  • Diabete mellito di tipo 2: nutrizione e movimento, May 2019.
  • La sicurezza microbiologica degli alimenti, March 2019.

Other projects