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I am currently a PhD student in the Molecular Biosciences program at ITQB-Universidade NOVA de Lisboa. I hold a Bachelor's degree in General and Applied Biology (2016) and a Master's degree in Biology (2019) from Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Italy. In 2019, I joined the Microbial and Enzyme Technology Lab, led by Prof. Ligia O. Martins at ITQB NOVA, and in 2020, I was awarded an FCT PhD scholarship. During my PhD, I had the opportunity to contribute to the SMARTBOX European project, which focused on developing enzymatic cascades for the conversion of lignin-derived compounds. Throughout my research, I have gained experience in protein purification, biochemical characterization, protein engineering, and biocatalysis, contributing to key advancements in the knowledge of isoeugenol oxygenases for the production of vanillin from lignin-derived compounds.
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Identification

Personal identification

Full name
Mario De Simone

Citation names

  • De Simone, Mario

Author identifiers

Ciência ID
8B12-0216-A558
ORCID iD
0000-0001-6363-3129

Websites

Knowledge fields

  • Natural sciences - Biological Sciences - Biochemistry

Languages

Language Speaking Reading Writing Listening Peer-review
Italian (Mother tongue)
English Upper intermediate (B2) Advanced (C1) Upper intermediate (B2) Advanced (C1) Upper intermediate (B2)
Portuguese Upper intermediate (B2) Advanced (C1) Upper intermediate (B2) Advanced (C1)
Education
Degree Classification
2016/09/06 - 2019/05/28
Concluded
 Biology (Laurea Magistrale)
Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Italy
""Structural and functional characterization of a peroxiredoxin from Thermus thermophilus"" (THESIS/DISSERTATION)
 108/110
2012/09/25 - 2016/03/22
Concluded
 BIOLOGIA GENERALE E APPLICATA (Bachelor (1st cycle))
Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Italy
""Heterologous expression and purification of a-galactosidase from Thermus thermophilus"" (THESIS/DISSERTATION)
 110/110 cum laude
Affiliation

Others

Category
Host institution 		Employer
2021/01/01 - 2024/12/31 PhD student Universidade Nova de Lisboa Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica, Portugal
Universidade Nova de Lisboa Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica, Portugal
Projects

Grant

Designation Funders
2021/01/01 - 2024/12/31 Improvement of Isoeugenol Monooxygenases for Sustainable Production of Lignin-Derived Vanillin
2020.08246.BD
PhD Student Fellow
Universidade Nova de Lisboa Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica, Portugal
 Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia
Ongoing
2019/08/01 - 2023/10/31 Selective Modifications of ARomatics through Biocatalytic Oxidations
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/EC/H2020/837890/EU
Research Fellow
Bio Base Europe Pilot Plant, Belgium
 European Union
Concluded
Outputs

Publications

Journal article
  1. De Simone, Mario; Alonso-Cotchico, Lur; Lucas, Maria Fátima; Brissos, Vânia; Martins, Lígia O.. "Distal mutations enhance efficiency of free and immobilized NOV1 dioxygenase for vanillin synthesis". Journal of Biotechnology 391 (2024): 92-98. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiotec.2024.06.012.
    10.1016/j.jbiotec.2024.06.012
  2. Ivana Maric , Maximilian J. L. J. Fürst, Korneel Van Aelst, Sander Van den Bosch, Mario De Simone, Lígia O. Martins, Ber. "A One-Pot, Whole-Cell Biocatalysis Approach for Vanillin Production using Lignin Oil". 365 22 (2023): 3987-3995. https://doi.org/10.1002/adsc.202300868.
    Published
  3. De Simone, Mario; Alvigini, Laura; Alonso-Cotchico, Lur; Brissos, Vânia; Caroli, Jonatan; Lucas, Maria Fátima; Monza, Emanuele; et al. "Rationally Guided Improvement of NOV1 Dioxygenase for the Conversion of Lignin-Derived Isoeugenol to Vanillin". Biochemistry 62 2 (2022): 419-428. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.biochem.2c00168.
    10.1021/acs.biochem.2c00168
  4. Zuliani, Luca; Serpico, Annabel; De Simone, Mario; Frison, Nicola; Fusco, Salvatore. "Biorefinery Gets Hot: Thermophilic Enzymes and Microorganisms for Second-Generation Bioethanol Production". Processes 9 9 (2021): 1583. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/pr9091583.
    10.3390/pr9091583
Activities

Oral presentation

Presentation title Event name
Host (Event location)
2024/07/12 ENGINEERING NOV1 OXYGENASE FOR HIGH-YIELDS PRODUCTION OF LIGNIN-DERIVED VANILLIN 11th Meeting on OxiZymes
Maria Curie-Sklodowska University of Lublin (Lublin, Poland)
2021/05/10 Flash presentation - "Characterization of a more active and stable mutant of NOV1 oxygenase for the sustainable production of lignin derived vanillin" EFB Virtual conference 2021

Event participation

Activity description
Type of event 		Event name
Institution / Organization
2024/10/14 - 2024/10/17 Innovation Challenges for Early Career Researchers
Workshop
 EUTOPIA Innovation Challenges: Researchers Impact Series
Univerza v Ljubljani, Slovenia
2023/06/25 - 2023/06/29 Poster presentation - "Directed Evolution of NOV1 Dioxygenase To Promote Production Of Lignin-Derived Vanillin"
Conference
 Biotrans 2023, La Rochelle, France
2023/03/28 - 2023/03/31 Poster presentation - "Construction of smart libraries to enhance the catalytic activity of NOV1 oxygenase and promote production of lignin-derived vanillin"
Conference
 Novel enzymes 2023
Universität Greifswald, Germany
2023/02/20 - 2023/02/24 Computing and business skills for science students
Workshop
 Workshop - Beyond the lab
Zymvol, Spain
2022/07/05 - 2022/07/08 Poster presentation - "Improvement of NOV1 Oxygenase by Rational Design for the Sustainable Production of Lignin-derived Vanillin"
Conference
 Oxizymes Conference 2022
Università degli Studi di Siena, Italy
2019/12/05 - 2019/12/07 Poster presentation - "Production and characterization of isoeugenol monooxygenase from Pseudomonas nitroreducens and bioconversion into vanillin by whole cell reactions"
Congress
 Microbiotec 19 - Congress of Microbiology and Biotechnology 2019
Sociedade Portuguesa de Microbiologia, Portugal
2019/05/19 - 2019/05/19 Poster presentation "Characterization of a new antioxidant enzyme from Thermus thermophilus"
Workshop
 2° Workshop BIO/10
Società italiana di biochimica e biologia molecolare, Italy