Our
Team
GROUP LEADER AND PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
Beatrice Bodega
PI
Beatrice Bodega is a molecular biologist specializing in epigenetics. She earned her degree in Medical Biotechnology in 2003 and a Ph.D. in Biotechnology applied to Medical Sciences in 2006 from the University of Milan.
In 2009, she moved to Rome to join Valerio Orlando’s lab at the Dulbecco Telethon Institute (Santa Lucia Foundation), where she specialized in epigenetics and the study of transposable DNA elements in human cell differentiation.
In 2014, she started her independent research career as a Group Leader at INGM (National Institute of Molecular Genetics).
Since 2021, she has been an Associate Professor of Molecular Biology the University of Milan, continuing her research on gene regulation and epigenetics and Coordinator of the Bioinformatics unit at INGM.
Research scientist
Federica Marasca
Project Leader (Molecular Biologist)
Federica pursued her master’s and PhD training in epigenetics in the laboratory of Prof. Valerio Orlando in Rome. After obtaining her PhD in 2016, her research continued in Milan within the Bodega Lab, where she investigated human repetitive elements, with a particular focus on the retrotransposon LINE1 and its role in epigenetic regulation of cellular adaptation in T lymphocytes, both under physiological and pathological conditions. Her research interests lie in uncovering hidden epigenetic mechanisms that govern cellular plasticity and adaptation to the environment, leveraging genomic, epigenetic, and advanced microscopy approaches.
Valeria Ranzani
Research Scientist (Bioinformatician)
Valeria earned her M.S. in Industrial Biotechnology from the University of Milano-Bicocca in 2010, followed by a PhD in Molecular and Translational Medicine in 2015 at the same institution. She became a member of Bodega Lab in 2020, where her work centers on the development and bioinformatics analysis of cutting-edge omics technologies to investigate the roles of Transposable Elements in health and disease.
PostDoc
Rebecca Vadalà
Post-doctoral Fellow (Wet)
Rebecca graduated in Industrial Biotechnology in 2017 at the University of Milano-Bicocca. She joined Bodega lab in 2017 and earned a Ph.D. in Molecular and Translational Medicine in 2022 as part of the DIMET program at the University of Milano-Bicocca. Currently, her studies focus on dissecting the role of LINE1-containing transcripts in regulating the dysfunctional state of tumor-infiltrating T lymphocytes.
Filippo Vittorio Burattin
Post-doctoral Fellow (Wet)
Filippo obtained his M.S. in Molecular Biology of the Cell in 2019 at University of Milano Statale. He joined Bodega Lab in 2020, focusing on dissecting the role of LINE1 retrotransposons in the shaping the phenotype of T cells across the human lifespan. He consequently attained his PhD in Molecular and Cellular Biology in 2025. Currently, he is working on deciphering the pro-oncogenic role of LINE1 RNAs in colorectal cancer.
Benedetto Polimeni
Post-doctoral Fellow (Bioinformatician)
Benedetto earned his M.S. in Cell and Molecular Biology from the University of Turin in 2016 and joined the Bodega Lab as a graduate fellow in 2018. In 2024, he successfully defended his PhD thesis in which he developed bioinformatics methods to explore the single-cell dynamics of Transposable Elements in Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes. At Bodega Lab, he is currently investigating the role of Retrotranposons in human cell differentiation.
Francesco Panariello
Post-doctoral Fellow (Bioinformatician)
Francesco obtained his M.S. in Medical Biotechnology in 2018 at University of Milano Statale and, in 2023, his PhD within SEMM program (Milan) at TIGEM (Pozzuoli, Naples). He joined Bodega Lab in 2024, focusing on dissecting the role of Retrotransposable Elements in Tumor Infiltrating Lymphocytes.
PhD student
Valeria Di Gioia
4th year SEMM PhD candidate
Valeria started her master internship in Bodega Lab in 2020 and went on to complete her M.S. in Medical Biotechnology and Molecular Medicine at the University of Milano Statale. In 2021, she joined the SEMM PhD program at INGM (Milan), focusing her research on the epigenetic regulation of resting T cells by LINE1 transcripts, with a special emphasis on the mechanisms involving nuclear condensates.
Alen Stambolliu
1st year SEMM PhD candidate
Alen joined Bodega Lab in 2023 as a master student and obtained his M.S. in Quantitative Biology in 2024 at the University of Milano Statale. He is currently pursuing his PhD in Molecular Medicine within SEMM program, primarily working on single-cell transcriptomic and long-read sequencing data analysis.
Michele Panepuccia
2nd year SEMM PhD candidate
Michele started his master internship in Bodega Lab in 2022, earning his M.S. in Medical Biotechnology and Molecular Medicine at the University of Milano Statale. In 2023, he joined the SEMM PhD program at INGM (Milan) where his research focuses on unravelling the role of Retrotransposable Elements in T lymphocytes across health and disease conditions, with a focus on T regulatory cells.
Master/Graduate Student
Jan Zamporlini
Graduate Student
Jan joined Bodega’s lab as a master’s student in 2022. After obtaining his MSc in Quantitative Biology in 2023, he continued his work in the Genome Biology lab. His research now focuses on the development of bio-image analysis pipelines that contribute to the investigation of the epigenetic regulation of resting T cells by LINE1 transcripts and the biophysical mechanisms that drive this phenomenon.
Giulia Solbiati
Graduate Student
Giulia obtained her M.S. in Biomedical Research in 2024 at the University of Milano Statale. She joined Bodega Lab in 2023, where she focused on investigating the role of retrotransposable elements in colorectal cancer sensitivity to DNA damage.
Marta Sacco
Master Student
Marta is a young student in Molecular Biology of the Cell at University of Milan Statale. She recently joined Bodega Lab for her master thesis project, which focuses on unraveling the epigenetic mechanisms involved in T cell quiescence and exhaustion, regulated by LINE1-transcripts and chromatin condensates.
Mariachiara Palma
Graduate Student
Mariachiara graduated in Molecular Biotechnology and Bioinformatics at the University of Milan in 2023 and completed a second-level Master in Bioinformatics for Functional Genomics in 2024. She currently investigates DNA methylation patterns of LINE retrotransposons in colorectal cancer, aiming to understand their impact on tumor progression and sensitivity to DNA damage.
Amanda Bianchi
Master Student
Amanda obtained her BSc in Biology at the University of Porto in 2022 and started her MSc in Molecular Biotechnology and Bioinformatics at the University of Milan in 2023. She joined Bodega Lab in 2024 to carry out her master thesis project about the role of Retrotransposable Elements in the context of immuno-oncology.
Marco Cominelli
Master Student
Marco obtained his BSc in Biotechnology in 2023 and is currently pursuing an MSc in Bioinformatics for Computational Genomics at the University of Milan and Politecnico di Milano. He joined Bodega Lab in 2025 for his master thesis project, which focuses on investigating single-cell expression of Retrotransposable Elements in Tumor Infiltrating Lymphocytes using both short- and long-read sequencing technologies.
