PhD student profile, Giulia Della Scala

PhD Student: Giulia Della Scala

Tutor: Prof. Diego Mora – DeFENS

Dean: Prof. Francesco Bonomi

Research area: Agri-Environment

PhD title achieved on: 18^th December 2018

 

Research topic

Genetic improvement of technological properties in food-related microorganisms through the controlled manipulation of complex microbial/viral ecosystems

 

Project Synopsis

My PhD research project is aimed to better understand how urease activity can modulate milk acidification. Should urease activity be considered a negative trait in milk fermentation processes? Is the selection of urease-negative strains a possible solution, or mutants showing a reduced but not absent activity could be more performant? Is it possible to control the post-acidification processes during cold storage through the modulation of urease activity? This PhD project is aimed to answer to the previous questions in order to develop new technological strategies, to select and to genetically improve S. thermophilus strains for dairy applications at industrial level.

 

Project keywords

microbiology, Streptococcus thermophilus, milk acidification, urease activity

 

Contacts

Department of Food, Environmental and Nutritional Science

Via Celoria 2/Via Mangiagalli 25 – Room 3059

Tel: +39 02 50319273

Email: giulia.dellascala@unimi.it

 

Sponsor

Fellowship sponsor: Sacco S.r.l., Via Manzoni, 29/A 22071 Cadorago (Co) – Italy

 

 

Publications

 

Kaduskar R.*, Della Scala G.*, Al Jabri Z.J.H., Arioli S., Musso L., Oggioni M. R., Dalla Valle S. and Mora D. (2017) Promysalin is a salicylate-containing antimicrobial with a cell-membrane-disrupting mechanism of action on Gram-positive bacteria. Sci. Rep. 7:8861. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-07567-0.

*The authors have contributed equally to the work.

 

Colombo S., Arioli S., Della Scala G., Neri E., Gargari G. and Mora D. (2017) Viromes as genetic reservoir for the microbial communities in aquatic environments: a focus on antimicrobial-resistance genes. Front. Microbiol. 8:1095. DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.01095.

 

Arioli S., Della Scala G., Remagni M.C., Stuknyte M., Colombo S., Guglielmetti S., De Noni I., Ragg E. and Mora D. (2016) Streptococcus thermophilus urease activity boosts Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus homolactic fermentation. Int. J. Food Microbiol. 247, 55–64. DOI: 10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2016.01.006

 

 

Proceedings of National and International Conferences

 

Della Scala G., Volontè F., Pedersen M., Scaglioni L., Mazzini S., Mora D. and Arioli S. (2017) Cooperation and competition in milk environment: the evolutionary strategy of Streptococcus thermophilus.

Oral presentation at 4t^h International Conference on Microbial diversity 2017, 24^th-26^th October 2017, Bari.

 

Della Scala G., Volontè F., Pedersen M., Scaglioni L., Mazzini S., Mora D. and Arioli S. (2017) Optimization of milk acidification through milk alkalization: the paradox of Streptococcus thermophilus metabolism.

Poster presentation at 12^th International Symposium on Lactic Acid Bacteria, 27^th-31^st August 2017, Egmond am Zee (the Netherlands).

 

Della Scala G., Volontè F., Pedersen M., Arioli S., and Mora D. (2017) Development of a milk-based medium for the isolation of Streptococcus thermophilus urease-defective mutants.

Poster presentation at 12^th International Symposium on Lactic Acid Bacteria, 27^th-31^st August 2017, Egmond am Zee (the Netherlands).

 

Della Scala G., Kaduskar R, Al Jabri Z.J.H., Arioli S., Musso L., Oggioni M. R., Dalla Valle S. and Mora D. (2017) Promysalin is a salicylate-containing antimicrobial with a cell-membrane-disrupting mechanism of action against lactic acid bacteria and several other Gram-positives.

Poster presentation at 12^th International Symposium on Lactic Acid Bacteria, 27^th-31^st August 2017, Egmond am Zee (the Netherlands).

 

Della Scala, G. (2016) Full pH Control in Dairy Process (FullpHD).

Poster presentation at 21^th Workshop on the Developments in the Italian PhD Research on Food Science Technology and Biotechnology, September 14^th-16^th, 2016, Portici (NA).

 

Della Scala G., Arioli S., Volontè F. and Mora D. (2016) Development of an automatized fluorescent-based method for the monitoring of milk acidification.

Poster presentation at FoodMicro 2016 – 25th International ICFMH conference – 19^th-22^th July 2016, Dublin (Ireland).