Luca Lignitto, PhD
Group Leader
Career summary
Throughout my career, I have been interested in the molecular mechanisms underlying the degradation of proteins controlled by the Ubiquitin-Proteasome System (UPS). For the last 14 years, I specialized in the study of E3 ubiquitin ligases, identifying their proteolytic substrates and defining the pathophysiological relevance of their degradation. For my investigations I acquired extensive expertise in a wide range of experimental methods of molecular biology, biochemistry, proteomics, genomics, and mouse models. During my PhD training in the lab of Dr. Antonio Feliciello at the University of Naples “Federico II” in Italy, I dissected the molecular machinery mediating the cross-regulation between the cyclic AMP signaling pathway and the UPS (Lignitto et al., Nature Cell Biol., 2011). As a postdoc, first, in my graduate student lab, and afterwards at New York University (NYU) in the USA, I focused my studies on the UPS-regulated signaling networks underpinning oncogenesis (Lignitto et al., Nature Commun., 2013) (Lignitto et al., Cell, 2019). In particular, during my postdoc in the lab of Dr. Michele Pagano at NYU, I uncovered the existence of a molecular network that links mutations of the oxidative stress pathway to alterations of the heme signaling and UPS-mediated protein degradation, which ultimately promotes oncogenesis. Currently, I am a Group Leader at the Marseille Cancer Research Centre (CRCM) and at the Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS) in Marseille. My laboratory focuses on understanding how heme signaling and oxidative stress regulate cellular physiology and cancer pathogenesis. Our long-term goal is to identify new therapeutic approaches for cancer patients harboring alterations of the heme-oxidative stress pathway.
Luca Lignitto, PhD
Group Leader
Career summary
Throughout my career, I have been interested in the molecular mechanisms underlying the degradation of proteins controlled by the Ubiquitin-Proteasome System (UPS). For the last 14 years, I specialized in the study of E3 ubiquitin ligases, identifying their proteolytic substrates and defining the pathophysiological relevance of their degradation. For my investigations I acquired extensive expertise in a wide range of experimental methods of molecular biology, biochemistry, proteomics, genomics, and mouse models. During my PhD training in the lab of Dr. Antonio Feliciello at the University of Naples “Federico II” in Italy, I dissected the molecular machinery mediating the cross-regulation between the cyclic AMP signaling pathway and the UPS (Lignitto et al., Nature Cell Biol., 2011). As a postdoc, first, in my graduate student lab, and afterwards at New York University (NYU) in the USA, I focused my studies on the UPS-regulated signaling networks underpinning oncogenesis (Lignitto et al., Nature Commun., 2013) (Lignitto et al., Cell, 2019). In particular, during my postdoc in the lab of Dr. Michele Pagano at NYU, I uncovered the existence of a molecular network that links mutations of the oxidative stress pathway to alterations of the heme signaling and UPS-mediated protein degradation, which ultimately promotes oncogenesis. Currently, I am a Group Leader at the Marseille Cancer Research Centre (CRCM) and at the Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS) in Marseille. My laboratory focuses on understanding how heme signaling and oxidative stress regulate cellular physiology and cancer pathogenesis. Our long-term goal is to identify new therapeutic approaches for cancer patients harboring alterations of the heme-oxidative stress pathway.
Luca Lignitto, PhD
Group Leader
Career summary
Throughout my career, I have been interested in the molecular mechanisms underlying the degradation of proteins controlled by the Ubiquitin-Proteasome System (UPS). For the last 14 years, I specialized in the study of E3 ubiquitin ligases, identifying their proteolytic substrates and defining the pathophysiological relevance of their degradation. For my investigations I acquired extensive expertise in a wide range of experimental methods of molecular biology, biochemistry, proteomics, genomics, and mouse models. During my PhD training in the lab of Dr. Antonio Feliciello at the University of Naples “Federico II” in Italy, I dissected the molecular machinery mediating the cross-regulation between the cyclic AMP signaling pathway and the UPS (Lignitto et al., Nature Cell Biol., 2011). As a postdoc, first, in my graduate student lab, and afterwards at New York University (NYU) in the USA, I focused my studies on the UPS-regulated signaling networks underpinning oncogenesis (Lignitto et al., Nature Commun., 2013) (Lignitto et al., Cell, 2019). In particular, during my postdoc in the lab of Dr. Michele Pagano at NYU, I uncovered the existence of a molecular network that links mutations of the oxidative stress pathway to alterations of the heme signaling and UPS-mediated protein degradation, which ultimately promotes oncogenesis. Currently, I am a Group Leader at the Marseille Cancer Research Centre (CRCM) and at the Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS) in Marseille. My laboratory focuses on understanding how heme signaling and oxidative stress regulate cellular physiology and cancer pathogenesis. Our long-term goal is to identify new therapeutic approaches for cancer patients harboring alterations of the heme-oxidative stress pathway.
Luca Lignitto, PhD
Group Leader
Career summary
Throughout my career, I have been interested in the molecular mechanisms underlying the degradation of proteins controlled by the Ubiquitin-Proteasome System (UPS). For the last 14 years, I specialized in the study of E3 ubiquitin ligases, identifying their proteolytic substrates and defining the pathophysiological relevance of their degradation. For my investigations I acquired extensive expertise in a wide range of experimental methods of molecular biology, biochemistry, proteomics, genomics, and mouse models. During my PhD training in the lab of Dr. Antonio Feliciello at the University of Naples “Federico II” in Italy, I dissected the molecular machinery mediating the cross-regulation between the cyclic AMP signaling pathway and the UPS (Lignitto et al., Nature Cell Biol., 2011). As a postdoc, first, in my graduate student lab, and afterwards at New York University (NYU) in the USA, I focused my studies on the UPS-regulated signaling networks underpinning oncogenesis (Lignitto et al., Nature Commun., 2013) (Lignitto et al., Cell, 2019). In particular, during my postdoc in the lab of Dr. Michele Pagano at NYU, I uncovered the existence of a molecular network that links mutations of the oxidative stress pathway to alterations of the heme signaling and UPS-mediated protein degradation, which ultimately promotes oncogenesis. Currently, I am a Group Leader at the Marseille Cancer Research Centre (CRCM) and at the Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS) in Marseille. My laboratory focuses on understanding how heme signaling and oxidative stress regulate cellular physiology and cancer pathogenesis. Our long-term goal is to identify new therapeutic approaches for cancer patients harboring alterations of the heme-oxidative stress pathway.
Luca Lignitto, PhD
Group Leader
Career summary
Throughout my career, I have been interested in the molecular mechanisms underlying the degradation of proteins controlled by the Ubiquitin-Proteasome System (UPS). For the last 14 years, I specialized in the study of E3 ubiquitin ligases, identifying their proteolytic substrates and defining the pathophysiological relevance of their degradation. For my investigations I acquired extensive expertise in a wide range of experimental methods of molecular biology, biochemistry, proteomics, genomics, and mouse models. During my PhD training in the lab of Dr. Antonio Feliciello at the University of Naples “Federico II” in Italy, I dissected the molecular machinery mediating the cross-regulation between the cyclic AMP signaling pathway and the UPS (Lignitto et al., Nature Cell Biol., 2011). As a postdoc, first, in my graduate student lab, and afterwards at New York University (NYU) in the USA, I focused my studies on the UPS-regulated signaling networks underpinning oncogenesis (Lignitto et al., Nature Commun., 2013) (Lignitto et al., Cell, 2019). In particular, during my postdoc in the lab of Dr. Michele Pagano at NYU, I uncovered the existence of a molecular network that links mutations of the oxidative stress pathway to alterations of the heme signaling and UPS-mediated protein degradation, which ultimately promotes oncogenesis. Currently, I am a Group Leader at the Marseille Cancer Research Centre (CRCM) and at the Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS) in Marseille. My laboratory focuses on understanding how heme signaling and oxidative stress regulate cellular physiology and cancer pathogenesis. Our long-term goal is to identify new therapeutic approaches for cancer patients harboring alterations of the heme-oxidative stress pathway.
Key Research Articles
ORF10-Cullin-2-ZYG11B complex is not required for SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Mena EL, Donahue CJ, Vaites LP, Li J, Rona G, O'Leary C, Lignitto L., Miwatani-Minter B, Paulo JA, Dhabaria A, Ueberheide B, Gygi SP, Pagano M, Harper JW, Davey RA, Elledge SJ.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2021 Apr 27;118(17):e2023157118.
Linking ubiquitin to actin dynamics during cell fusion.
Lignitto L., Pagano M.
Dev Cell. 2021 Mar 8;56(5):569-570.
Nrf2 activation promotes lung cancer metastasis by inhibiting the degradation of Bach1.
Lignitto L., LeBoeuf S.E., Homer H., Jiang S., Askenazi M., Karakousi T.R., Pass H.I., Bhutkar A.J., Tsirigos A., Ueberheide B., Sayin V.I., Papagiannakopoulos T., and Pagano M.
Cell. 2019 Jul 11;178(2):316-329.e18. (See also related Preview, N&V, F1000, and In the News)
Proteolytic control of neurite outgrowth inhibitor NOGO-A by the cAMP/PKA pathway.
Sepe M., Lignitto L., Porpora M., Delle Donne R., Rinaldi L., Belgianni G., Colucci G., Cuomo O., Viggiano D., Scorziello A., Garbi C., Annunziato L., Feliciello A.
Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2014 Nov 4;111(44):15729-34.
Proteolysis of MOB1 by the ubiquitin ligase praja2 attenuates the Hippo pathway and supports glioblastoma growth.
Lignitto L., Arcella A., Sepe M., Rinaldi L., Delle Donne R., Gallo A., Stefan E., A. Bachmann V., Oliva MA., Storlazzi CT, L’Abbate A., Brunetti A., Gargiulo S., Gramanzini M., Insabato L., Garbi C., Gottesman M.E., and Feliciello A.
Nature Commun. 2013;4:1822.
Expression of the Ring Ligase PRAJA2 in Thyroid Cancer.
Cantara S., D'Angeli F., Toti P., Lignitto L., Castagna MG., Capuano S., Prabhakar BS., Feliciello A., Pacini F.
J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2012 Nov;97(11):4253-9.
An intimate connection between ubiquitination and compartmentalized cAMP signaling.
Lignitto L., Sepe M., Carlucci A., and Feliciello A.
Cell Cycle. 2011 Jul 1;10(13):2051-2.
Control of PKA stability and signalling by RING ligase Praja2.
Lignitto L., Carlucci A., Sepe M., Stefan E., Cuomo O., Nisticò R., Scorziello A., Savoia C., Garbi C., Annunziato L., and Feliciello A.
Nature Cell Biol. 2011 Apr;13(4):412-22. (See also related N&V)
Control of mitochondria dynamics and oxidative metabolism by cAMP, AKAPs and the proteasome.
Carlucci A., Lignitto L., Feliciello A.
Trends Cell Biol. 2008 Dec;18(12):604-13.
Protein tyrosine phosphatase PTPD1 regulates FAK autophosphorylation and cell migration.
Carlucci A., Gedressi C., Lignitto L., Avvedimento V.E., Villa-Moruzzi E., Nezi L., Garbi C., and Feliciello A.
J Biol Chem. 2008 Apr 18;283(16):10919-29.