In nostri studi si focalizzano nella comprensione dei meccanismi alla base della rigenerazione del muscolo scheletrico. Abbiamo concentrato i nostri sforzi nel determinare il ruolo del fattore trascrizionale MyoD nell'orchestrare il ciclo cellulare, la risposta al danno al DNA e il differenziamento muscolare nei progenitori muscolari con il fine ultimo di dererminare la relazione tra l'accumulo del danno al DNA e la capacità di effettuare il differenziamento muscolare. Abbiamo esteso le nostre analisi alle cellule senescenti permettendoci di comprendere maggiormente la regolazione del differenziamento muscolare durante l'invecchiamento. Utilizzando un modello patologico di invecchiamento precoce, stiamo mappando a livello dell'intero genoma l'accumulo di danno al DNA in pazienti affetti da Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome. Le nostre metodologie comprendono la biologia cellulare e molecolare valendosi di analisi epigenetiche genome-wide. Parallelamente siamo interessati a determinare il ruolo del processo autofagico nella rigenerazione muscolare e nella progressione della patologia della distrofia muscolare di Duchenne.
2011 - oggi: Permanent position as Researcher at the National Research Council (CNR) of Italy. Projects: Impact of regeneration-induced genotoxic stress on muscle stem cell activity and aging in pathological conditions. Study of DNA damage accumulation at specific genomic sites that could determine changes in gene expression in Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome. Role of autophagy in Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy progression.
2014 - 2019: Research Project Grant (Parent R01) National Institutes of Health (NIH) Title: “Role of STAT3 in muscle stem cells activation".
2013 - 2015: Progetto Bandiera Epigenomica. Title: “Epigenetic mechanisms in Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome”.
2012 - 2013: Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Title: “DNA damage and muscle differentiation”.
2011- 2012: Independent scientist in the lab of Pier Lorenzo Puri, Dulbecco Telethon Institute (DTI), c/o Fondazione S. Lucia Rome, Italy. Project: DNA damage and muscle differentiation.
2007 - 2011: Senior Postdoc in the lab of Pier Lorenzo Puri, Dulbecco Telethon Institute (DTI), c/o Fondazione S. Lucia, Rome, Italy. Project: DNA damage signaling as a key mediator of the functional antagonism between cellular senescence and terminal differentiation.
2006 - 2007: Postdoc in the lab of Pier Lorenzo Puri, Dulbecco Telethon Institute (DTI), Roma, Italy. Project: DNA damage response in myogenic precursors.
2002 - 2006: PhD in Biotechnology at the University of L'Aquila.
2002 - 2006: PhD student in the group of Dr. Pier Lorenzo Puri, Dulbecco Telethon Institute (DTI), Roma, Italy. Project: DNA damage and differentiation checkpoints in skeletal muscle cells.
2000 - 2002: Marie Curie Postdoctoral fellowship in the group of Dr. Jiri Bartek at the Danish Cancer Society, Copenhagen DK. Project: DNA damage in terminal differentiation.
1997 - 2000: Specialization in Clinical pathology at the University of Rome La Sapienza.
1998 - 2000: Postdoctoral fellow in the group of Dr. Marco Crescenzi at the National Institute of Health of Rome, Italy. Project: Identification of genes activated by E1A in myotubes by representational difference analysis (RDA).
1996 - 1997: Post-graduate student in the group of Dr. Marco Crescenzi at Regina Elena Cancer Institute, Rome. Project: Analysis of E1A-mediated reactivation of the cell cycle in terminally differentiated cells.
1991 - 1995: Degree in Biological Science (cum laude) at the University of Rome La Sapienza.
2015: Guest Editor of Stem Cell International Journal.
2012: Guest Editor of the Comparative and Functional Genomics Journal.
2012: Reviewer for Cell Cycle.
Muscle gets stressed? p53 represses and protects. Latella L. and Puri P.L., Cell Death Differ., 2015.
STAT3 signaling controls muscle satellite cell number and function. Tierney M.T., Aydogdu T., Sala D., Malecova B., Gatto S., Puri P.L., Latella L. and Sacco A., Nat Med., 2014.
Redox or Death: Checking on Fetal Myogenesis. Latella L. and Puri P.L., Dev. Cell, 2014.
DNA damage-activated ABL-MyoD signaling contributes to DNA repair in skeletal myoblasts. Simonatto M., Marullo F., Chiacchiera F., Wang JYJ, Musaro’ A., Latella L., Puri P.L., Cell Death Differ., 2013.
Coordination of cell cycle, DNA repair and muscle gene expression in myoblasts exposed to genotoxic stress. Simonatto M, Giordani L, Marullo F, Minetti GC, Puri PL, Latella L., Cell Cycle, 2011.
An evolutionarily acquired genotoxic response discriminates MyoD from Myf5, and differentially regulates hypaxial and epaxial myogenesis. Innocenzi A*, Latella L*, Messina G, Simonatto M, Marullo F, Berghella L, Poizat C, Shu CW, Wang JY, Puri PL, Cossu G., EMBO Rep., 2011.
Differentiation-induced radioresistance in muscle cells. Latella L, Lukas J, Simone C, Puri PL, Bartek J., Mol Cell Biol., 2014.
p38 pathway targets SWI-SNF chromatin-remodeling complex to muscle-specific loci. Simone C, Forcales SV, Hill DA, Imbalzano AN, Latella L, Puri PL, Nat Genet., 2004.
Np95 is regulated by E1A during mitotic reactivation of terminally differentiated cells and is essential for S phase entry. Bonapace IM, Latella L, Papait R, Nicassio F, Sacco A, Muto M, Crescenzi M, Di Fiore PP, J Cell Biol., 2002.
Reconstitution of cyclin D1-associated kinase activity drives terminally differentiated cells into the cell cycle. Latella L, Sacco A, Pajalunga D, Tiainen M, Macera D, D'Angelo M, Felici A, Sacchi A, Crescenzi M., Mol Cell Biol., 2001.