Cinzia Volonté

Cinzia Volonté is Research Director at National Research Council (CNR-IASI Institute) in Rome, Italy, and she directs the Cellular Neurobiology Unit at Fondazione Santa Lucia in Rome, since 1998. She graduated with honor in Biological Science at La Sapienza University in Rome (1984). After postdoctoral research performed at Cornell University, Ithaca-USA (1985-1987) with Prof. Efraim Racker, and Columbia University, New York-USA (1987-1992) with Prof. Lloyd A. Greene, she obtained a tenured research Group Leader position at the CNR-IN Institute (1992-2001), and a senior First Researcher position at the CNR-INMM and CNR-IBCN Institutes (2001-2020). In 2015 she obtained the Full Professor National Qualification in Biochemistry (MIUR 05/E1), in Molecular Biology (MIUR 05/E2), and was nominated Management Committee Substitute of Cost Action BM 1406, European Cooperation in Science &Technology. Dr. Volonté was elected member of International Society for Neurochemistry (ISN) Conference Committee (2001-2007), was recipient of Young Scientist Lectureship Award (1993) and Travel Award (1995) from ISN, and of Luca Barone Awards from Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei (1983, 1984). Dr. Volonté has published about 140 articles/invited reviews in prestigious journals, and has co-edited Hot Topic Special Issues in CNS & Neurological Disorders-Drug Targets (2012, 2015), and Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience (2018). Her research was developed into patents granted in several countries comprising China, EU and USA. Dr. Volonté collaborates to the editorial board of Neuropharmacology since 2018, CNS & Neurological Disorders-Drug Targets since 2010, and Purinergic Signalling since 2004, serving as a reviewer for international scientific journals and financial agencies. Through the years, Dr. Volonté’s research has provided contributions to the understanding of purinergic and histaminergic signaling during glutamate-evoked excitotoxicity, ischemia, multiple sclerosis and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Dr. Volonté has also focused her studies on the functional outcomes and signal transduction mechanisms sustained by extracellular ATP and Nerve Growth Factor in neuronal and glial cells. Goals of current research are: to understand the early and late neuronal and glial mechanisms contributing to neurodegeneration and neuroinflammation in ALS and MS; to identify the molecular interactors and signaling that regulate the purinergic and histaminergic involvement in ALS and MS; using the knowledge of purinergic and histaminergic signaling to develop novel therapeutic strategies for ALS and MS.