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Trieste is gearing up to host the third edition of the Big Science Business Forum (BSBF) in 2024, an international business-oriented conference that brings together major European research infrastructures. The stages leading up to the forum, set to take place from October 1 to 4 of next year at the Trieste Convention Center located within the Old Port of the regional capital, were unveiled today at Trieste Next, as part of the event “Non solo ricerca. Il valore delle infrastrutture scientifiche per l’economia e la società” (Not just research. The value of scientific infrastructures for economy and society), organized by Area Science Park in collaboration with SiS FVG. Trieste’s selection for BSBF 2024 is no accident: the city has one of the highest concentrations of researchers in Europe and is home to many national and international centers of scientific excellence. Among these is the Consortium for Central European Research Infrastructure (CERIC), an open access point to some of the most advanced scientific investigation structures from eight Central European countries (Austria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Italy, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Hungary) in the fields of materials, biomaterials, and nanotechnology, with a special focus on energy and life sciences. “Unlike other external innovation support programs, BSBF is an initiative independently promoted by the scientific community to facilitate the meeting between research and international industry,” explains Paolo Acunzo of ENEA, Director of BSBF Trieste 2024 activities. “The fact that this important forum will be held in Italy for the first time is a clear acknowledgment of the leading role our national system has taken in building a European Big Science market. Until 2025, Trieste will be at the center of attention of the diverse world of Big Science, and as early next week, on September 26, representatives of all major international infrastructures will meet in Trieste to agree on the next joint activities in preparation for BSBF Trieste 2024 ” concludes Acunzo. Trieste’s candidacy, supported by Regione Autonoma Friuli Venezia Giulia on the initiative of the regional councilor Alessia Rosolen and the Italian government, was also backed by the Central European Initiative, the first International Forum for Regional Cooperation based in Trieste. Co-organizers of the forum include a series of international research centers: CERN, ESA, ESO, ESRF, ESS, European XFEL, FAIR, ILL, F4E, SKAO. The local organizing committee consists of the Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, the Municipality of Trieste, Area Science Park, Promo Turismo FVG, the University of Trieste, and the Chamber of Commerce Venezia Giulia. Additional partners are the Industrial Liaison Offices: ILO (Denmark), ILO (Spain), and ILO Network Italia, a network made up of representatives from CNR, ENEA, INAF, and INFN. BSBF aims to be the first “one-stop-shop” for European companies and other organizations interested in interacting with large European scientific organizations. The goal is to create a common market for big science in Europe that is stronger, more transparent, and efficient, without entry barriers for industrial suppliers looking to establish relationships with large research installations. The first edition of BSBF, hosted by the Danish Agency for Science and Higher Education in Copenhagen, Denmark, was a huge success. Similar results were achieved by the second BSBF edition held in Granada, Spain: more than 1,000 delegates from over 500 companies and organizations from 30 countries attended. The exhibition area featured over 200 companies and organizations, and over 790 B2B and B2C meetings took place during the event. BSBF offered insights into procurement opportunities and contracts for companies worth nearly 10 billion euros in total per year.

The long-awaited start of the North Adriatic Hydrogen Valley (NAHV) is here at last. The first transnational initiative of this kind under the Horizon Europe program, supported by the Clean Hydrogen Partnership, is being launched in Portorož-Portorose, Slovenia. More than 100 delegates representing 37 project partners from three countries, Croatia, the Friuli Venezia Giulia Autonomous Region in Italy, and Slovenia, will gather there for a project kick-off meeting. Beginning on 1st September 2023, the NAHV will run for 72 months. It includes 17 pilots to be developed in different locations in all three partner countries. The partnership, which has been awarded a grant of €25 million by Clean Hydrogen Partnership, and is led by HSE, Slovenia’s largest electricity producer and trader and the largest producer of electricity from renewable sources, includes 37 organizations: companies, universities, institutes and other public entities from the three participating countries, including Area Science Park. The project design covers the entire value chain of renewable hydrogen use, from production, through storage and distribution, to its end use in various sectors, notably industry and land and maritime transport, creating leverage to accelerate the transition to renewables on three target pillars: hard-to-abate industries, and the energy and transport sectors. These are the main reasons why the NAHV has received the Seal of Excellence, which is awarded under Horizon Europe to projects that have been highly rated. The key aim of the initiative is to create a market for green hydrogen on both the demand and supply sides, making it a competitive energy source for the future. Key industry players from all three countries will develop pilot projects to produce up to 5,000 tonnes of renewable hydrogen per year from renewable energy sources, destined for energy storage, distribution and use. It is expected that some 20% of the produced renewable hydrogen will be exchanged between the participating countries, thus creating a primary regional market for hydrogen. By introducing advanced hydrogen technologies and developing skills and infrastructure, the partnership also pursues other key objectives of the European Green Deal. In particular, the NAHV testbed projects address the decarbonization of important industrial sectors such as steel, cement and glass production, and provide sustainable land and maritime transport solutions linked to reducing the carbon footprint. It is expected that the implementation of the planned mature stage innovation activities will unleash further investments in renewable hydrogen-related technologies in an amount of more than €300 million, destined to increase the capacity of hydrogen production, storage, transmission and use. Additional investments are expected to be funded on top, both during the course of the project implementation and afterwards, from private and public sources in the form of follow-up investments in the successfully implemented pilots in 17 testbed locations across the three participating countries, as well as through new initiatives which will contribute to the evolution of a social and economic ecosystem based on renewable hydrogen. The foreseen development creates the need for new competencies and skills, which makes the universities and research institutions which are partners in the initiative important protagonists in designing and disseminating new educational programmes, as the NAHV is destined to become a vehicle for job creation.

What will the cities of the future look like? Will they be built and/or adapted to sustainability requirements? How will we overcome the challenges of the ecological transition and carbon neutrality These were some of the questions explored at the event “Living the future: a challenge for territories” organised in the context of the GeoAdriatico symposium and in collaboration with the LIFE IN-PLAN project, co-financed by the European Union. Technical personnel, businesspeople and educators met at Area Science Park last June to discuss approaches to tackle the historic challenges facing Europe and beyond, to create sustainable and resilient cities for the future. Speakers at the event, Khalid El-Metaal (UWC Adriatic), Anna Lindorfer (Urban Innovation Vienna), Daniela Luise (Coordinamento Agende 21 Locali Italiane), Francesco Mazza (MOOG inc), Sergio Nardini (East Adriatic Port System Authority), Susana Ruiz Fernandez (Municipality of Bilbao), Fabrizia Salvi (Area Science Park), Roberto Siagri (entrepreneur in the DeepTech industry) and Simona Tršinar (REGEA – Regional Energy and Climate Agency for North-West Croatia) presented interesting proposals from a variety of perspectives (construction to education and territorial planning to urban regeneration), converging on certain universal themes such as the importance of digitalisation and the involvement of citizens, and the role of cities in relaunching the territory in a logic of sustainability. What will the cities of the future look like? How will they differ from those we know now? From environmental challenges to educational, technological, construction and social ones linked to the relationship with local citizens and stakeholders, there are many different aspects to consider when planning future scenarios for local development. Content from the event and ideas that emerged during discussion have been gathered in the report “Living the future: a challenge for territories – 2023 GeoAdriatico symposium”. This provides an overview along with examples from various European cities, from Vienna to Zagreb and Padua to Bilbao, not forgetting the role of largescale logistical infrastructure for the development of local areas, as in the case of Trieste’s port. The workshop identified two driving forces for the future: the digital transformation and circularity & sustainability. Digitalisation, along with AI and robotics, could play a crucial role in shaping the future of our cities and beyond. Embracing this digital transformation, it is essential to rethink everything with a bottom-up approach. The future of cities and non-urban areas may be different from how we have previously imagined, with the digital transformation of areas outside cities into “smart lands”, not just urban areas becoming “smart cities”. Furthermore, the city of the future should be a sustainable, inclusive, safe and lasting urban environment. Through strategic planning and integrated sustainability, cities can take effective action to combat climate change and mitigate its impacts, implementing measures in various spheres, such as sustainable transport systems, incentives for energy-efficient buildings and infrastructure, support for compact urban development, promotion of green spaces and adaptation to changes in the climate. Finally, contemporary urban life should welcome diversity as the nucleus of a vibrant urban centre. Education is key for the sustainable urban communities of the future to inform tomorrow’s citizens and create new areas of awareness. It will be necessary for citizens to have their say and understand the context in which they live. Read the full report

ICGEB Group Leader, Mouse Molecular Genetics Lab, Dr. Andrés F. Muro and Research Associate, Dr. Giulia Bortolussi have taken part in the European research project CureCN, which aims to develop a curative gene therapy for the ultra-rare Crigler-Najjar syndrome (CN) – a life-threatening liver disease which affects one in a million individuals at birth. The project commenced in 2013 and is led by Généthon, France and sponsored by the European Commission programme H2020. The consortium includes 11 partners from six European countries and has involved the external collaboration of ICGEB which was pivotal in generating pre-clinical data using its Ugt1a KO mouse model, thus setting the basis for the subsequent clinical translation of the trial. The results of the trial were published on 17 August in a joint manuscript in the New England Journal of Medicine, co-authored by Dr. Bortolussi and Dr. Muro. These represent the first clinical demonstration of the efficacy of gene therapy in a metabolic disease of the liver, demonstrating the safety and tolerance for the treatment as well as its efficacy at the highest dose. The trial demonstrated restored long-term expression of the missing enzyme with a large reduction in plasma bilirubin levels in the three adult patients treated with the highest dose. The current part of the study, launched in January 2023, aims to confirm the observed effect in a larger number of patients including children aged 10 years and over, the age at which the liver matures. Should the results be conclusive, this would enable a product license application at the French and European authorities. Dr. Muro states: “We are very proud of our contribution to the trial. The obtained in-patient results represent a fundamental step forward towards the application of gene therapy non only for Crigler-Najjar patients, but also for other liver genetic diseases. This is the first report of a long-term correction of a disease caused by a non-secreted liver protein.”

The 2023 edition of M&M Microscopy & MicroAnalysis  took place in Minneapolis (USA) on 23-27 July. The annual meeting of the Microscopy Society of America and the Microanalysis Society brings together scientists, technologists and researchers, with the aim of sharing knowledge, networking, and looking at scientific and technological innovations in the world of microscopy. Area Science Park attended the international event for the first time, represented by Regina Ciancio, Head of the Electron Microscopy Laboratory (LAME). Regina moderated the symposium entitled “Machine Intelligence in Action: Delivering Resilient, Sustainable, and Reconfigurable Microscope Ecosystems,” in which the new frontiers of microscopy in discovering and designing material, chemical and biological systems were discussed. During the congress, a special session was also held on the IMPRESS project, which Regina coordinates. Funded by the European Union and coordinated by CNR-IOM, the project aims to revolutionise the field of transmission electron microscopy by bringing together scientists, companies and industry experts to co-develop new interoperable prototypes. IMPRESS has 19 partners from some 11 European countries, and aims to develop an interoperable platform based on standardised modular components, designed to be flexible and adaptable to different microscopes and other types of equipment. The platform will be used to perform a wide range of multimodal correlative experiments using methodological options not currently accessible with commercially available electron microscopes, to meet the needs of a wide range of users. To achieve this, IMPRESS will make use of Pre-Commercial Procurement (PCP): an innovative tool through which companies with different competences can compete to contribute, together with scientists, to designing and building prototypes for different innovative applications. The “IMPRESS Supplier” event provided the platform for announcing the PCP Open Market Consultation, inviting companies to become an integral part of the project. The event was attended by around 80 people and provided an opportunity to showcase the various aspects of the European project and the PCP process, and to answer numerous questions from the audience of international scientists and leading companies in the field of electron microscopy. The next IMPRESS and PCP meeting will be held on 1 September 2023 in Düsseldorf. See full details.

Can the three intelligences – human (research, skills), natural (materials) and artificial – work together to solve one of the most complex challenges of the digital and green transformation? This is the challenge that Area Science Park, in partnership with MEET Digital Culture Centre in Milan, is launching as part of the wider European project S+T+ARTS in the City. A new call has been launched to find an art project able to translate and interpret the paradox of “twin transformation”, i.e. the ever-increasing need for rare and critical materials and minerals for making microchips, batteries, and tools and tech for generating renewable energy (solar panels, photovoltaic installations, wind turbines, etc.). We walk and live in cities rich in these materials which can be mined (“urban mining”), only the recycling or extraction processes can have a significant impact on the environment. How can we escape this vicious cycle? Finding new extraction techniques or recycling methods which have less of an impact, or researching and identifying new materials that are easier to extract and in larger quantities are three possible ways forward that are being explored. The call represents an opportunity to reflect on the symbiotic processes between nature, artificial intelligence and human intelligence, as part of one greater form of “city intelligence”. It may give rise to a utopian scenario, in which human intelligence mediates and integrates the other two forms of intelligence (artificial and natural), or a dystopian one, whereby humans are sidelined by the other two forms of intelligence that operate autonomously. The artistic prototype should emerge from creative speculation surrounding the concepts of sustainability, circularity and generative IA, aligning with the New European Bauhaus initiative. The residency is organised in partnership with MEET Digital Culture Center, a partner in the European programme S+T+ARTS (Science + Technology + Arts), with Area Science Park Trieste acting as co-host. Area Science Park will provide the artist with access to open data, as well as technology resources and platforms focused around the materials, data and life sciences.  The artist will also receive invaluable scientific support and guidance from the Institution’s researchers and from researchers in the network it coordinates. The deadline for submitting a project is 25 August 2023. >> Apply now

The BLUEAIR project Final event was held in a hybrid format in Trieste on July 11th. The Project involves 31 strategic partners representing the 8 countries of the Adriatic-Ionian Macroregion. The Final event “Shaping together the sustainable Blue Economy on the Adriatic-Ionian macro-region”, was attended by 100 representatives coming from all the countries involved (Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, Montenegro and Greece). The event was opened by Salvatore La Rosa, Director of the Research and Innovation Division of Area Science Park, the project’s lead partner, while Alessia Rosolen, Regional Councillor for Labour, Training, Education, Research, University and Family of the Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia had opened the afternoon session. Four thematic panels (I-Innovation Community, II-Innovation strategy, III-Blue skills to feed jobs and IV- Technology Foresight) offered an overview of the Sustainable Blue Economy context in the Adriatic-Ionian area – both as regards EU countries and IPA ones – and of the role that BLUEAIR has acquired within it. More than 20 representatives of the quadruple helix (EU, national and regional institutions and bodies, university and research bodies, and companies) provided important insights into the state of the art of EU and national policies and EU projects, as well as on topics related to the development of S3 and the Blue Economy, such as blue skills and innovation strategies, with specific in-depth analyses on the topics of alternative fuels, robotics, aquaculture and waterborne transport. The event was also an opportunity to launch and present two of the main outcomes of the BLUEAIR project. Firstly, the creation of an Innovation Community, an operational platform open to all players, public and private, aiming at improving and simplifying the collaboration for innovation in order to promote a sustainable blue economy in the Adriatic-Ionian region, operating at the micro, meso and macro-regional level and promoting collective innovation actions to drive and increase the visibility of Blue Growth and build strong partnerships across sectors and disciplines, supporting the development of a macro-regional innovation system, promoting supportive policies and practices, strengthening and supporting the awareness of new generations to sustainability and development issues and engaging with innovation ecosystems in other sea basins. A special insight was also devoted to the Technology Foresight conducted between 2022 and 2023. Its results were highly appreciated by the participating experts for its scientific accuracy and concrete approach. As in the case of the Innovation Community, the results of the Technology Foresight of the BLUEAIR project represent a heritage to be maintained and expanded in the perspective of the development of the Blue Economy in the Adriatic-Ionian area. The BlueAir project is financed under the Interreg ADRION program, which is funded by the European Regional Development Fund and the IPA II Fund. Read more  

Research published in the journal Nature Physics presents a new method for greater understanding of quantum materials. Employing an experimental technique using the synchrotron light source, an international team of researchers – including Italian organisations, the IOM Materials Foundry of the National Research Council of Trieste (CNR-IOM), University of Bologna, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice and La Statale University of Milan – have succeeded in measuring the “winding” of electrons, a property that determines certain particular characteristics of materials, knowledge which will be essential for their possible use in future advanced applications. The study, conducted at Sincrotrone Elettra in Trieste, also involved academics from the University of Würzburg (Germany), the University of St. Andrews (UK), Boston College (US) and the University of Santa Barbara (US). “The quantum properties of materials determine the behaviour of electrons, including their ‘topological winding’, meaning the curvature of the space in which they move within matter,” explains Ivana Vobornik, a researcher at CNR-IOM in Trieste. “By studying this property, one can identify the quantum properties of a certain material, and this enables greater understanding for applications in various technological fields, from renewable energy to biomedicine, and from electronics to quantum computers.” Specifically, the team focused on a class of materials known as “kagome materials”, named for their close resemblance to woven bamboo threads in traditional Japanese baskets. “These materials are revolutionising quantum physics due to their magnetic, topological and superconducting properties. Understanding these properties is therefore key,” adds the researcher. “To measure the characteristic of electron winding, an experimental technique was employed that relies on a synchrotron light source. In this case, measurements were conducted at Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste. Synergy with theoretical analysis and the use of powerful supercomputers was also key: theoretical simulations made it possible to guide the experiments to the specific area of the material in which the properties being studied manifest”. Rome, 12 June 2023 Image caption: Three perspectives of the surface on which electrons move, the Fermi surface. Left, the experimental result; centre and right, theoretical modelling. The colours red and blue represent a measure of electron speed. Both theory and experiment reflect the symmetry of the crystal, present in the Japanese “kagome” weave used to make traditional baskets. Summary Who: IOM Materials Foundry of the National Research Council of Trieste (CNR-IOM), University of Bologna, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice and La Statale University of Milan, University of Würzburg (Germany), University of St. Andrews (UK), Boston College (US) and the University of Santa Barbara (US). What: “Flat band separation and robust spin Berry curvature in bilayer kagome metals”, Nature Physics (2023), DOI 10.1038/s41567-023-02053-z., link: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41567-023-02053-z For information: Flavia Mancini, CNR-IOM, email: mancini@iom.cnr.it, mob.: +39 328 1230247, Giancarlo Panaccione, CNR-IOM, panaccione@iom.cnr.it, mob.: +39 335 5368898, Ivana Vobornik, CNR-Iom: vobornik@iom.cnr.it, mob.: +39 339 3967854 (contact details for professional use not to be published).

“Area Science Park is a hub for global, and above all Italian, knowledge, intelligence and expertise. It represents a concentration of our ability to excel. This area is the nucleus of a growing and ever stronger scientific community. A community that shows us again and again how powerful academic cooperation can be both for Italy’s innovation and as a diplomatic tool with international partners.” These were the words of the Minister for Universities and Research Anna Maria Bernini, during her visit to Area Science Park today, where she was welcomed by the President of the research institute, Prof. Caterina Petrillo, and General Manager Anna Sirica. Others present included the Regional Councillor for Research, Alessia Rosolen; the Mayor of Trieste, Roberto Di Piazza; the Prefect, Pietro Signoriello; and representatives of the scientific and technological institutions of SiS FVG, the Friuli Venezia Giulia Science and Innovation System. The President, Prof. Petrillo illustrated the core activities, strategic priorities and future development prospects of the research body to Minister Bernini, focusing on the investments that Area Science Park is making in the field of research and technological infrastructure. “We are very pleased that the Minister of Universities and Research has accepted our invitation to visit the institution and meet representatives of the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region’s Scientific and Innovation System,” commented President Caterina Petrillo after the meeting with the ministerial delegation. “Area Science Park is a national research institution under the aegis of the Italian Ministry of Universities and Research (MUR), with a unique profile and expertise developed over 45 years in the field of research and innovation serving the country. Today, thanks in part to funding from the MUR National Recovery and Resilience Plan, the institution is taking a further step forward, investing in new state-of-the-art equipment and attracting young talent. In fact, alongside two national partners, we are working on the finalisation of two research structures, one dedicated to the study of pathogens and another to the study of innovative materials.” Later, the Minister had the opportunity to visit some of the most important business and scientific entities at Area Science Park, starting with modefinance, a company with a technological and financial foundation, now part of the TeamSystem group. Modefinance is a native fintech company, founded in 2009 as a University of Trieste spin-off and incubated at Area Science Park, and develops artificial-intelligence and data-science solutions for credit risk assessment and management. Next was the ICGEB (International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology), an intergovernmental organisation with 45 cutting-edge laboratories across three continents. It forms an interactive network of 68 member states, with operations aligned with those of the United Nations System. It plays a key role in biotechnology by promoting research excellence, training and technology transfer to industry, making a tangible contribution to global sustainable development. At ICGEB, welcomed by centre Director-General Lawrence Banks, the Minister visited the Tumour Virology, Bacteriology, and Functional Cell Biology laboratories. In the afternoon, the ministerial delegation moved to the Basovizza campus, where Minister Bernini visited Area Science Park’s Laboratory of Genomics and Epigenomics (LAGE), a leading national centre in the field of genomics and epigenomics and a key element of the Life Sciences Platform, an open research structure providing expertise and services aimed at experimental testing, and applied and industrial research projects, and which will be further enhanced thanks to MUR National Recovery and Resilience Plan funds. The next stop was the R&D laboratories of Alifax, one of the most important Italian companies specialising in the development, production and distribution of clinical diagnostic tools for laboratory automation, with a strong focus on scientific research and technological innovation supported by a constant programme of investments. Before leaving Area Science Park, the Minister visited Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste,the third-generation Italian synchrotron radiation facility serving the national and international scientific and industrial community. Alongside Elettra, since 2010 there has been Free Electron Laser FERMI, one of the few laser facilities of this type operational in the world, capable of ultrashort, microscopic observations at the atomic and molecular level. The Minister’s busy day ended with a visit to the icebreaker ship “Laura Bassi” of the OGS – National Institute of Oceanography and Applied Geophysics.

PICOSATS today announced the signing of a contract with the space logistics transportation company D-Orbit for the In-Orbit Demonstration of the RADIOSAT Ka-band transponder and the BEAMSAT K/Ka band horn antenna aboard the ION Satellite Carrier. ION Satellite Carrier is a multipurpose vehicle capable of performing satellite transport, payload hosting and advanced edge computing services in orbit in a single mission. The mission is scheduled for October 2023 and the target orbit is SSO, at an altitude of 500 – 600 km. “This opportunity will enable PICOSATS to reach flight heritage and enter the SATCOM equipment market with flight proven products” said Arianna Cagliari, VP Business Development. Founded in 2014 as a spin-off of the University of Trieste, PICOSATS is a company committed to the research, development, and commercialization of cutting-edge telecommunications systems for the small satellite market and beyond. The increasing use of small satellites in low orbits for satellite communications and the spectrum congestion has demanded the development of high-frequency, miniaturized telecommunications systems, and PICOSATS has seized the opportunity to enter this rapidly expanding market. PICOSATS is currently testing in an operational environment two transponders designed for CubeSats and small satellites, one in K/Ka and one in Ku-band for applications in LEO and GEO. The development of these products makes use of the know-how acquired by the company through various opportunities provided by the European and Italian Space Agencies. Along with the transponders, PICOSATS has also developed K/Ka-band and Ku-band horn antennas, and a V-band double reflector antenna for small satellites.

The kick off meeting at the Area Science Park officially got the “Pathogen Readiness Platform for CERIC-ERIC Upgrade” PRP@CERIC underway, the national project funded by Italian Ministry of Universities and Research (Ministero dell’università e della ricerca — MUR) within the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (Piano Nazionale di Ripresa e Resilienza — PNRR) and coordinated by the research institute Area Science Park in partnership with the National Research Council (Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche — CNR) (Institute of Materials [Istituto Officina dei Materiali] and Institute of Crystallography [Istituto di Cristallografia]), the University of Salerno, the University of Naples and the University of Salento. The project, which can count on funding of 41 million euro, aims to create a highly specialised research infrastructure, unique in Europe, which integrates instruments and expertise in biology, biochemistry, physics, bio-electronics, bio-informatics and data science to study pathogens of human, animal and plant origin and intervene quickly to prevent the spread of potential new outbreaks of diseases. A multidisciplinary approach is the key to achieving the fundamental and applied research objectives that the project aims to implement in compliance with the DNSH (Do No Significant Harm) principle, namely, not to cause significant harm to the environment. In line with practices already in place at the Area Science Park and Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste laboratories, both academic and industrial users will be provided open access to the new infrastructure for studies and analyses. PRP@CERIC provides for the construction of new laboratories, as well as the updating of existing instruments and services. In fact, the laboratories of Area Science Park, Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste, CNR and ICGEB (institutes of scientific excellence collaborating to implement the project) will be potentiated. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need to leverage solid scientific principles and interdisciplinary and international collaboration, which are all fundamental to successfully reducing the human, social and economic impact of potential future risks of epidemics. Research infrastructures can play a key role in understanding the fundamental aspects of pathogenicity and in the effective development of prevention and healthcare strategies. Cutting-edge instruments, methodologies and technologies on diverse and mutually integrated scales (from single molecules to whole organisms) have the potential to meet the sensitivity and selectivity requirements required by the study of complex biological systems, thus contributing to shedding new light on host-pathogen interaction mechanisms. “The PRP@CERIC project was developed based on the expertise in genomics and data science already present at the research institute, integrating these competencies with those of the Area Science Park system. I refer, for example, to the research excellence in the field of virology at the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), as well as the experimental capabilities of the Electra synchrotron light source, a research centre of international importance”, commented the President of Area Science Park, Caterina Petrillo, during the project’s kick off meeting. “This consolidated scientific expertise is complemented by certain specialties at the universities of Naples, Salento and Salerno, partners with whom we have already developed projects of national importance. The integration of varied expertise and the networking of laboratories located in different geographical areas will create a unique infrastructure in Europe that will be at the service of the world of research and business, nationally and internationally”. The PRP@CERIC project, which will continue for 30 months, it also adheres to the FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) data guidelines, that is, the data produced will be processed in such a way as to be easily available, accessible, interoperable and reusable, in the spirit of open and collaborative science at an international level. Sustainability will also be extended to models of higher education, since the project involves the setting up of master’s course for graduates and training for the next generation of researchers. The “Pathogen Readiness Platform for CERIC-ERIC Upgrade” PRP@CERIC project is funded by the Italian National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) under Mission 4 “Education and Research”, Component 2 “From Research to Enterprise”, Investment Line 3.1 “Fund for the creation of an integrated system of research and innovation infrastructures”, funded by the European Union – Next Generation EU.

An international research team led by Milan’s Institute of Photonics and Nanotechnologies – part of the National Research Council (Cnr-lfn) – has used an innovative approach to investigate the chirality of molecules, an essential property to develop technologically innovative solutions in the fields of materials science, pharmaceutics, and catalysis processes. The study was conducted at the laboratories of the Elettra Synchrotron Research Centre in Trieste, home to the FERMI free-electron laser. This is a last generation instrument that has enabled chirality at the level of individual atoms to be “photographed” during an ultrafast process. The results of the study have been published in the scientific journal Physical Review X. “A chiral molecule is not superimposable on its mirror image: in other words, it is a molecule that does not have mirror symmetry, and that exists in two different forms, called enantiomers, which cannot be superimposed by rotation or translation”, explained Caterina Vozzi, director of Cnr-lfn. “Understanding this property is important to many aspects of chemistry, biology and physics: the chemical reactivity and biological and pharmacological activity of chiral molecules can vary significantly depending on the configuration of the enantiomers. In applications with these complex molecules, it is therefore important to understand how each atom contributes to total chirality, especially during chemical reactions”. In the study, the variation of the chiral properties of a molecule were analysed over time using the radiation produced by a free electron laser (FEL), a cutting-edge technology that produces extremely intense and short pulses of light, lasting a few femtoseconds (1 femtosecond corresponds to a millionth of a billionth of a second). “The FERMI free electron laser is the only one in the world capable of producing pulses of circularly polarized light capable of exploring these phenomena. This type of light is able to provide detailed information on the structure and dynamics of molecules, opening up new perspectives in basic and applied research ”, added Oksana Plekan, researcher at Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste, co-author of the study. “In this study, we have shown how the chirality of a molecule changes during an ultrafast process when we observe it from the perspective of the atoms forming it. This ability to observe chirality from multiple points of view is similar to stereoscopic vision in humans, thanks to which we can perceive the depth and three-dimensionality of the world around us”, stated Davide Faccialà, researcher at Cnr-Ifn and first author of the study. “The technique we have demonstrated enables us to observe in real time how the chirality of a molecule changes at an unprecedented level of detail, opening up new avenues for understanding the chemical and physical properties of chiral molecules in chemical reactions”. The study demonstrated the importance of combining expertise in different scientific fields to achieve innovative results in research. ———– The Italian Institute for the Structure of Matter (Istituto di struttura della materia — Ism) of the National Research Council (Consiglio nazionale delle ricerche — Cnr), the French National Centre of Scientific Research (Centre national de la recherche scientifique) and the University of Bordeaux (France), the University of Nottingham (UK), the German Electron Synchrotron (Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron) and the University of Hamburg (Germany), the Polytechnic University of Milan (Politecnico di Milano) (Italy), the University of Nova Gorica (Slovenia), the Sincrotrone Soleil (France) and the University of Tokyo (Japan) contributed to the research.