Role
Researcher at the Reference Center for Behavioral Sciences and Mental Health of the Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS), Rome
Bio
A graduate in Ecology with a focus on Animal Behavior from the University of Parma, she earned a PhD in Ethology from the University of Florence. In 2016, she received the "L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women and Science" award, which allowed her to conduct research at the Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies of the National Research Council (CNR). Since 2017, she has been a researcher at the Reference Center for Behavioral Sciences and Mental Health of the Italian National Institute of Health.
His research integrates ethology and behavioral neuroscience and focuses on the preclinical and translational development of innovative therapeutic approaches for neuropsychiatric disorders, particularly for forms of depression resistant to conventional therapies, through the study of pharmacological interventions and neuromodulation.
He has held roles of increasing scientific responsibility in competitive national research projects, first as a unit leader and subsequently as a Principal Investigator. He coordinates the PNRR PRIDE project, which conducted the first clinical trial in Italy on the therapeutic use of psilocybin, a psychedelic substance, for pharmacologically-induced depression.
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Since 2024, she has been a professor of Ethology at Sapienza University of Rome, and since 2025, she has served on the Board of Directors of the Italian Society of Ethology (SIE) as Secretary and Treasurer. She is the author of over 80 scientific articles published in international journals.