Research interests
Plasticity of CNS in brain development and disease at anatomical and functional level
Biographical sketch
2002: BSc cum laude in Biology, Univ. of Pisa, Italy. Thesis: "Role of the extracellular matrix as a regulator of visual cortical plasticity" supervisors: proff. L. Maffei, N. Berardi and dr. T. Pizzorusso.
2003: selection for the course "Structure, function and development of the visual system", Cold Spring Harbor, New York, USA.
2003-2005: Ph.D. in Neurobiology (70/70 cum laude). Scuola Normale Superiore, Pisa. Thesis: "Plasticity of the Mammalian retina during development". Supervisor: Prof. L. Maffei.
2006-2008: Post-doc at Institute of Neuroscience-CNR, Pisa
2008-2010: Post-doc at NEST, Scuola Normale Superiore, Pisa
Partecipation to international meetings and seminars: FENS 2002-Paris, SFN (Society for Neurosciences)-2004, San Diego, SFN-2005, Atlanta, SFN-2006, Washington, FENS-2008, Geneve, SINS 2009, Milano, Eurorett-2010, Edimburgh
2008-2010: lectures at Univ. of Florence, (‘models of synaptic plasticity in CNS’) in the course of neurophysiology (Prof. T. Pizzorusso, Faculty of Psychology)
2004-2010: SNS Fundings for the projects Giovani Ricercatori
2010: PI of FIRB FUTURO IN RICERCA 2008
Talks: 2005: International Symposium, “Neuroplasticity, Neurotrophin Factors and Mood Disorders”, Pisa about “ENVIRONMENTAL ENRICHMENT ACCELERATES THE MATURATION OF VISUAL SYSTEM BOTH AT RETINAL AND CORTICAL LEVEL.”
2009: 7th European FP NeuroImage, Subotica (Serbia)
2010: 2th European Rett Syndrome Conference (selected poster)
Selected publications
8. Mainardi M, Landi S, Gianfranceschi L, Baldini S, De Pasquale R, Berardi N, Maffei L, Caleo M, “Environmental enrichment potentiates thalamocortical transmission and plasticity in the adult rat visual cortex”, J Neurosci Res. 2010 Aug 18.
7. Landi S, Ciucci F, Maffei L, Berardi N, Cenni MC, “Setting the pace for retinal development: environmental enrichment acts through insulin-like growth factor 1 and brain-derived neurotrophic factor”, J Neurosci. 2009 Sep 2;29(35):10809-19.
6. Mainardi M., Landi S., Berardi N., Maffei L., Pizzorusso T., “Reduced Responsiveness to Long-Term Monocular Deprivation of Parvalbumin Neurons Assessed by c-Fos Staining in Rat Visual Cortex”, PLoS ONE.4(2):e4342. Epub 2009 Feb 4.
5. Ciucci F., Putignano E., Baroncelli L., Landi S., Berardi N., Maffei L., “Insulin like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) mediates the effects of enriched environment (EE) on visual cortical development”, PloS ONE, 2(5): e475 (2007).
4. Landi S., Cenni MC., Maffei L., Berardi N., “Environmental enrichment effects on development of retinal ganglion cell dendritic stratification require retinal BDNF”, PLoS ONE, 2(4): e346 (2007).
3. Landi S., Sale A., Berardi N., Viegi A., Maffei L., Cenni MC., “Retinal development is sensitive to postnatal environmental enrichment: a role for BDNF”, FASEB J, 21(1):130-9 (2007).
2. Pizzorusso T., Medini P., Landi S., Baldini S., Berardi N., Maffei L., “Structural and functional recovery from early monocular deprivation in adult rats”, PNAS, 103(22): 8517-22 (2006).
1. Sale A., Putignano E., Cancedda L., Landi S., Cirulli F., Berardi N., Maffei, “Enriched environment and acceleration of visual system development”, Neuropharmacology, 47: 649-660 (2004).