Address book
Contacts
GIANFRANCO SANTOVITO
Position
Professore Associato
Structure
Address
VIA U. BASSI, 58/B - PADOVA
Telephone
0498276310
Notices
Orari di ricevimento
Giovedì from 11:00 to 13:00
Dipartimento di Biologia, Centro Vallisneri, Via Ugo Bassi 58B, Ala Scientifica, 6° Semipiano Sud, stanza 16. E' opportuno concordare un appuntamento. Sono possibili altre date ed orari oltre quelli indicati.
Teachings
- BIOLOGY, PHYSIOLOGY AND ANATOMY, AA 2025 (INP7078929)
- COMPARATIVE AND ENVIRONMENTAL PHYSIOLOGY OF MARINE ANIMALS, AA 2025 (SCQ4107391)
- BIOLOGY, PHYSIOLOGY AND ANATOMY, AA 2024 (INP7078929)
- COMPARATIVE AND ENVIRONMENTAL PHYSIOLOGY OF MARINE ANIMALS, AA 2024 (SCQ4107391)
- BASICS AND DIDACTICS OF BIOLOGY, AA 2023 (SUP3050891)
- LIFE CYCLES AND ADAPTATIONS OF MARINE ORGANISMS, AA 2023 (SCQ0093579)
Publications
Some of the most recent articles published in journals with impact factor:
Schumann S., Stoilova V., Bortoletto E., Piva E., Pacchini S., Mozzi G., Jechow A., Marion A., Bertotto D., Erlandson A., Hölker F., Greenberg L., Santovito G. (2025) Impact of Artificial Light at Night (ALAN) on Cardiac Function and Acute Oxidative Stress Physiology in Migratory Brown Trout Smolts. Environ. Pollut., 381, 126593. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2025.126593
Pacchini S., Vanzana G., Schumann S., Piva E., Bakiu R., Bertotto D., Bottacin-Busolin A., Irato P., Marion A., Santovito G.* (2025) Characterisation of the prdx4 gene in Squalius cephalus and its role in freshwater environments with varying impact of perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Chemosphere, 373, 144167. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2025.144167
Piva E., Nicorelli E., Pacchini S., Schumann S., Drago L., Vanzan G., Tolomeo A.M., Irato P., Bakiu R., Gerdol M., Santovito G. (2024) Unravelling stress granules in the deep cold: Characterisation of TIA-1 gene sequence in Antarctic fish species, Fish Shellfish Immunol., 154, 109903. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fsi.2024.109903
Bakiu R., Piva E., Pacchini, S., Santovito G. (2024) Antioxidant Systems in Extremophile Marine Fish Species, J. Mar. Sci. Eng., 12, 1280. https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse12081280
Schumann S., Mozzi G., Piva E., Devigili A., Negrato E., Marion A., Bertotto D., Santovito G. (2023) Social buffering of oxidative stress and cortisol in an endemic cyprinid fish. Sci. Rep., 13 20579. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-47926-8
Lugaj A., Korro K., Tolomeo A.M., Bakiu R., Santovito G. (2023) Possibilities of using mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis) to predict rotavirus contamination in Albania. J. Vet. Res., 67 339-345. https://doi.org/10.2478/jvetres-2023-0053
Pacchini S., Piva E., Schumann S., Irato P., Pellegrino D., Santovito G. (2023) An Experimental Study on Antioxidant Enzyme Gene Expression in Trematomus newnesi (Boulenger, 1902) Experimentally Exposed to Perfluoro-octanoic Acid. Antioxidants, 12, 352. https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox12020352
Bakiu R., Pacchini, S., Piva E., Schumann S., Tolomeo A.M., Ferro D., Irato P., Santovito G. (2022) Metallothionein Expression as a Physiological Response against Metal Toxicity in the Striped Rockcod Trematomus hansoni. Int. J. Mol. Sci., 23, 12799. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms232112799
Drago L., Ferro D., Bakiu R., Ballarin L., Santovito G. (2022) Typical 2-Cys Peroxiredoxins as a Defense Mechanism against Metal-Induced Oxidative Stress in the Solitary Ascidian Ciona robusta. Antioxidants, 11, 93. https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox11010093
Piva E., Schumann S., Dotteschini S., Brocca G., Radaelli G., Marion A., Irato P., Bertotto D., Santovito G. (2022) Antioxidant Responses Induced by PFAS Exposure in Freshwater Fish in the Veneto Region. Antioxidants, 11, 1115. https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox11061115
Drago L., Peronato A., Franchi N., Ballarin L., Bakiu R., Santovito G. (2021) Stress granules in Ciona robusta: molecular evolution of TIA-1-related nucleolysin and tristetraprolin and first evidence of their gene expression in an invertebrate chordate under metal-induced stress conditions, Comp. Biochem. Physiol. C, 243, 108977. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cbpc.2021.108977
Research Area
- Study of antistress (including oxidative stress) proteins in evolutionary and ecotoxicological fish and mollusks.
- Study of antistress (including oxidative stress) proteins in the solitary ascidian Ciona robusta in an evolutionary and ecotoxicological key.
- Study of the anti-stress (including oxidative stress) proteins of the ciliated protozoan Tetrahymena thermophila, used as a model organism in ecotoxicological and biomedical research.
- Study of the physiological responses of freshwater animals in relation to anthropogenic environmental stress.
- Innovative approaches to the teaching of biology in kindergarten, primary and secondary schools.
Thesis proposals
For students on master's degree courses in the biological field, theses will be placed in the following research areas:
- Study of the antioxidant system in Antarctic fish and molluscs from an evolutionary and ecotoxicological perspective.
- Study of anti-stress proteins, from an evolutionary and ecotoxicological perspective, in the solitary ascidian of the Venice Lagoon Ciona robusta (in collaboration with Prof. Ballarin of the Department of Biology of the University of Padua).
- Study of the physiological responses of freshwater animals in relation to anthropogenic environmental stress.
- Study of the antioxidant system of the ciliated protozoan Tetrahymena thermophila, also used as a model organism in ecotoxicological and biomedical research.
- Study of oxidative stress in human organoids exposed to environmental contaminants (in collaboration with Dr. Tolomeo of the Department of Women's and Children's Health, University of Padua).
The methodologies used will range from biochemistry (UV and VIS spectrophotometric assays), to molecular biology (purification of nucleic acids; synthesis, amplification, cloning and sequencing of cDNA; semi-quantitative RT-PCR and quantitative Real Time-PCR), cytology (cell cultures of prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms), and bioinformatics (multi-alignment of nucleotide and amino acid sequences, primers design, phylogenetic analysis by cladogram construction).
For students on the Master of Science in Primary Education course, the theses will concern educational research in the field of biology. The research activity will be conducted in a school environment where specially designed frontal and laboratory lessons will be conducted. Topics will range across all disciplines of biology, and not only with reference to the National Curriculum Directions (2012, 2018 e 2025).
