About
Silvia Onesti obtained a degree in Chemistry from the University of Pavia, followed by a PhD in Biophysics at Imperial College London. After two brief spells in Pavia and a l’École polytechnique (Paris) she became a Group Leader at Imperial College, where she worked for more than 20 years at the interface between chemistry, physics and biology. In 2009 she moved back to Italy to start the Structural Biology Department at Elettra - Sincrotrone Trieste. Her research activity is focussed on the molecular and structural aspects of protein: nucleic acid interaction, that are at the core of DNA replication, repair and transcription, using a combination of cell biology, biochemistry, biophysics, crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy. Proteins that interact with DNA and RNA are essential for cell growth and stability, and are thus potential drug targets for anti-viral, antibiotic and anti-tumor drugs.
