Contacts - Research

Scientific interests:
- System Biology
- Gene Expression
- Data Mining
- Systems for Decision Support in Oncology
- Molecular Profiling of cancer affected patients
- Ontological models
- Design of DNA repair system inhibitors

Patents (as inventor):

2007 - 4-Heteroarylmethyl substituted phthalazinone derivates (PARP inhibitors) - Patent number: NO20071579
2006 - Phthalazinone derivatives (PARP inhibitors) - Patent number: US2006063767
2006 - 4-Heteroarylmethyl substituted phthalazinone derivates (PARP inhibitors) - Patent number: WO2006021801

Papers:

2006 Forte S - "Anna Tramontano, Protein Structure Prediction, Book review" - E J med Chem, 2006 Oct 2
2005 Librando V, Forte S – “Computer evaluation of protein segments removal effects from naphthalene 1,2-dioxygenase enzyme on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons interaction ” - Biochemical Engineering Journal . 2005 Dec 15;27(2):161-166
2004 Pignatello R, Guccione S, Forte S, Di Giacomo C, Sorrenti V, Vicari L, Uccello Barretta G, Balzano F, Puglisi G. – “Lipophilic conjugates of methotrexate with short-chain alkylamino acids as DHFR inhibitors. Synthesis, biological evaluation, and molecular modelling.” - Bioorg Med Chem. 2004 Jun 1;12(11):2951-64
2004 Librando V, Forte S, Sarpietro MG. – “Structure effect on the interaction of phenylurea herbicides with model biomembrane as an environmental mobility parameter.” - Environ Sci Technol. 2004 Jan 15;38(2):503-7.

Conferences Proceedings :

2007 S. Forte, S. Scarpulla, A. Laganà, L. Memeo, M. Gulisano. - "Gene Expression Analysis for the Identification of Genes Involved in Early Tumour Development" - Proceedings of the 15th International Workshops on Conceptual Structures ICCS 2007, Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield UK, July 22-27, 2007 (62-68).
2004 V. Librando, S. Forte - "Virtual approach to design enzymes involved in the degradation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons" - QSAR and Molecular Modelling in Rational Design of Bioactive Molecules, Proceedings of the European Symposium on Structure-Activity Relationships (QSAR) and Molecular Modelling, 15th, Istanbul, Turkey, Sept. 5-10, 2004

Communications :

2007 Laganà A., Forte S., Giugno R., Pulvirenti A., Shasha D., Ferro A. - "miR-Synth: a tool for designing highly specific synthetic miRNAs" ECSB 2007 - The European Conference on Synthetic Biology: design, programming and optimization of biological systems - Sant Feliu de Guixols, Spain, November 24-29 2007.
2007 Forte S., Laganà A., Giugno R., Pulvirenti A., Ferro A. - "Supervised Classification of Gene Expression Profiles Through Data Mining Techniques" Functional Genomics & Systems Biology Conference - Wellcome Trust Conference Centre, Hinxton (Cambridge) UK, October 10-13 2007.
2007 Lorenzo Memeo, Stefano Forte, Konrad Matysiak, Mariusz Duplaga, Salvatore Scarpulla, Massimo Gulisano - "MATCH PROJECT: IMPROVEMENT OF THERAPY SELECTION BY MATCHING MOLECULAR DATA FROM COLON CANCER PATIENTS" 21st European Congerss of Pathology - 8-13 September 2007 Istambul.
2007 A. Ferro, S. Forte, R. Giugno, A. Laganà, A. Pulvirenti, D. Barbagallo, C. Di Pietro, A. Majorana, M. Purrello, M. Ragusa, D. Bonci, R. De Maria, A. Pagliuca. - "Prediction of human targets for viral encoded microRNAs by thermodynamics and empirical constraints"BITS 2007 Meeting, Naples, April 26-28, 2007.
2006 C. Di Pietro, M. Ragusa, L. Duro, V. D‚Agostino, P. Triberio, D. Barbagallo, A. Di Cataldo, G. Li Destri, A. Laganà, S. Forte, S. Pernagallo, S. Valenti, M.R. Guglielmino, T. Maniscalchi, R. Giugno, A. Pulvirenti, M. Santagati, G. Russo, M. Scalia, R. Bernardini, L. Pavone, S. Stefani, A. Ferro, K.H. Grzeschik, M. Purrello. - "The Apoptotic Machinery As A Biological Complex System: An Omics Analysis and Identification of Candidate Genes for Breast Adenocarcinoma, Thyroid Carcinoma and Neuroblastoma"IX Congresso della Associazione Italiana di Biologia e Genetica generale e molecolare (AIBG), Massa Lubrense, September 11-14, 2006.
2006 Rappazzo G, Forte S, Lanzafame M, D’Agostino V, Maniscalchi T, Raciti M, Santagati M, Viglianisi F, Stefani S - "Construction and analysis of a COG-based microbial proteome database: disappointements and surprises." International School on Advanced Biomedicine and Bioinformatics 2006
2006 C. Di Pietro, M. Ragusa, L. Duro, V. D’Agostino, P. Triberio, D. Barbagallo, A. Di Cataldo, G. Li Destri, A. Laganà, S. Forte, S. Pernagallo, S. Valenti, M. R. Guglielmino, T. Maniscalchi, R. Giugno, A. Pulvirenti, M. Santagati, G. Russo, M. Scalia, R. Bernardini, S. Guccione, L. Pavone, S. Stefani, A. Ferro, K. H. Grzeschik, M. Purrello. - "Complex Systems Biology: Structural, Functional and Pathological Genomics of the Apoptotic Machinery and Identification of Candidate Genes for Breast Adenocarcinoma, Thyroid Carcinoma and Neuroblastoma"VIII Congresso SIMAI, Baia Samuele, Ragusa, May 22-26, 2006.
2004 Francesca Spyrakis, Pietro Cozzini, Micaela Fornabaio, Stefano Forte, Salvatore Guccione, Laura Giurato – “The Significance of the Protonation State and the pH Effects in Studying and Building Protein-Ligand Interaction Models” - 2nd Workshop on "The state-of-the-art of Computational Chemistry in the Universities of Calabria and Basilicata" Catanzaro 5-6 Feb 2004
2004 Kurt Kristiansen, Ingebrigt Sylte, Rebecca Ciaccio , Stefano Forte, and Salvatore Gruccione – “A Preliminary Human Endothelin-A(ETA) Receptor Model” - 2nd Workshop on "The state-of-the-art of Computational Chemistry in the Universities of Calabria and Basilicata" Catanzaro 5-6 Feb 2004
2003 Vito Librando, Stefano Forte - “Bio-computer approach to biotechnological design of enzimes involved in the degradation of polyciclic aromatic hydrocarbons.” - XXI congresso della Società Chimica Italiana, Torino 22-27 Giugno 2003
2003 Vito Librando, Stefano Forte – “Computer analisys of NDO “ - Science and Superconputing at CINECA - Report 2003

 

Work experiences:

2005 - (....) PhD student in “Biology, Human genetics and Bioinformatics” at Catania University Department of Mathematics and Computer Science and Department of Biomedical Science (Catania, ITALY)
2005 - (....) Bioinformatician for Fondazione IOM (project: MATCH - Automated Diagnosis System for the treatment of colon cancer by discovering mutation on tumour suppressor genes) (Catania, ITALY)
2005 Researcher for “Laboratorio Nazionale del CIB” (Trieste, Italy)
2005 Toxicologist for Wyeth ltd (Catania plant, Italy)
2004 Computational chemist for ChemOvation Limited aka Kudos Horsham (Horsham, UK)
2003 Scientist for Catania University Dept. of Pharmaceutical Sciences (project: molecular modelling of methotrexate Lipophilic conjugates) (Catania, ITALY)
2003 Teacher for the IFTS course “Experts in Territorial and Naturalistic Informative Systems (SIT/SINA)” (Catania, ITALY)
2003 Teacher for the IFTS course ““Experts in Territorial Naturalistic Informative Systems for Environmental Monitoring” (Catania, ITALY)
2002 Scientist for Catania University Chemistry Department (project: development of a modelling system for the simulation of selective proteolysis effects of enzymes involved in environmental pollutants degradation ) (Catania, ITALY)