On July 20th, Giovanni Jacucci, researcher at the Physics Department of the University of Calabria, joined us for the seminar “Navigation and memory in phototactic microorganisms”.

His research focuses on how the green microalga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii moves through environments with changing light conditions, and how previous light exposure influences its swimming behaviour.

The seminar took place at the Department of Chemistry, University of Bari, as part of the Ph.D. programme in Chemical and Molecular Sciences.

Members of our research group participated in the 10th EuChemS Chemistry Congress (ECC10), held in Antwerp, Belgium, from 12 to 16 July 2026.

During the congress, Dr Davide Blasi delivered an oral presentation entitled “Polyhalogenated Thiele Hydrocarbons as Promising Stimuli-Responsive Molecular Materials” within the Molecular Design & Reactivity session.

Dr Ambra M. Fiore also gave an oral presentation entitled “Infrared Irradiation-Assisted Pd/Cu Catalysis for Sustainable C–N Cross-Coupling”.

Their contributions showcased the group’s latest research in the fields sustainable synthesis and advanced molecular materials.

We are excited to announce that Alessandro and Dario have successfully defended their PhD theses!
Their achievement reflects years of dedication and hard work, and we are proud of their contributions to our group.
Cheers to the next chapter of your brilliant careers!

We are pleased to announce that Prof. Farinola’s research group is a partner in the international doctoral training programme GREENs Green Robotics for Environmental and Sustainable Solutions (MSCA), focused on sustainable and green approaches to robotics.

Our contribution involves the development of chemically modified diatoms as functional microrobots for applications in environmental remediation, biomedicine, and sustainable materials.

More information: https://www.greens-msca.eu/

We are thrilled to announce our latest paper published in JACS, reporting the first IR-assisted, Pd-catalyzed direct C–H arylation polymerization for the rapid and sustainable synthesis of π-conjugated polymers for organic solar cells.
The method works under air, in quasi-solvent-free conditions, and enables fast access to high-performance donor–acceptor polymers.

Read more https://doi.org/10.1021/jacs.5c10309

A very warm welcome to Guido Oppezzo, PhD student from the University of Buenos Aires (UBA)!

Twist and shout, or rather… twist and shine!
We are thrilled to announce our latest research paper now published in Angewandte Chemie.
In this work, Thiele hydrocarbons reveal how subtle halogen substitutions can dramatically reshape ground state geometry and excited-state dynamics, turning structural contortions into striking optical responses.

Read more here:
https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.202524043

We are pleased to announce the publication of our new article, “The Silk Route to Green Catalysis: Silk Fibroin as a Recyclable Ligand for Iron-Catalyzed Olefin Epoxidation”, in ChemSusChem.
In this work we demonstrated how silk fibroin can coordinate iron ions to form an efficient and recyclable catalytic system. The resulting [Fe(SF)] complex enables high-yield olefin epoxidation under mild and green conditions, with low metal loading and excellent reusability.

👉 Read more: https://doi.org/10.1002/cssc.202501841

We are pleased to welcome Mario, a new PhD student to our research group.
His research is part of the Marie Curie Doctoral Network GREENS, focused on implementing the 5R principles in the design and application of micro- and nanorobotic platforms. His project investigates the functionalization of diatom microalgae biosilica with functional molecules and catalysts to develop sustainable, bio-inspired materials.
We look forward to his contributions and wish him a successful PhD journey with our team

Prof. Farinola gave a talk at Istituto Lombardo Accademia di Scienze e Lettere on “Materiali viventi per tecnologie sostenibili”.
Watch the video here: https://youtu.be/FTf755iR9CU.

Prof. Farinola recently visited the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, one of the largest and most renowned scientific institutions in China. Internationally recognized as the leading center for research in catalysis. The visit provided a valuable opportunity to exchange ideas with world-class researchers and to explore potential avenues for scientific collaboration.

We’re excited to share our latest publication in ChemSusChem! 🎉
In this article, we report the use of silk fibroin from Bombyx mori cocoons as a recyclable, organocatalyst for the selective Michael addition.
🧪 The reaction proceeds in mild conditions, with excellent yields and the catalyst remains active for over 50 cycles!
💡 In silico studies reveal the presence of catalytic pockets formed by polar amino acids within the silk structure, pointing to a truly bio strategy for green catalysis.

Check out the full article here: https://doi.org/10.1002/cssc.202500584

Last week, we had the pleasure of hosting the research group of Prof. Jozef Krajcovic from the Brno University of Technology. During their stay, we engaged in stimulating discussions and fruitful exchanges on a wide range of scientific topics!

We thank our colleagues from Brno for their visit and look forward to continued scientific cooperation!

We’re excited to share our latest publication! 🎉
Magnetic Diatom Shells to Deliver Neuronal Cells in Biological Systems: Where Chemistry Meets Nanobiotechnology 😍

Read more:
https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2025/tb/d5tb00352k

We're thrilled to announce that Annarita and Davide recently defended their PhD theses!
This marks the culmination of years of research and commitment.
Join us in congratulating them on this significant milestone!

We are excited to announce a new PhD position funded through the prestigious Marie Skłodowska-Curie Project "GREENS". This position focuses on the functionalization of biosilica of diatom microalgae with functional molecules and catalysts.
We are looking for highly motivated candidates!
Find here the link for the application:
https://euraxess.ec.europa.eu/jobs/328904

We are thrilled to announce that Carola and Mariella have successfully defended their Ph.D. theses in Chemical and Molecular Sciences and have officially earned their doctorates!

We are incredibly proud of their hard work and dedication to their research, and we can't wait to see what they will accomplish in the future.

Congratulations on this outstanding achievement, Carola and Mariella! 🎉👏

We’re thrilled to announce that we have recently published a Perspective article as part of the Early Career Series Revisited of ChemPlusChem. This work aims to be a checkpoint on diatom biosilica as a platform for functional materials. 🎉

Diatoms are photosynthetic microalgae with a unique nanostructured biosilica shell (frustule), known for its high surface area, mechanical resistance, and photonic properties. Our research has explored how these remarkable structures can be chemically functionalized for applications in sensing, biomedicine, optoelectronics, and energy storage.

Check out the full article here: https://doi.org/10.1002/cplu.202400462

This year's MRS Fall Meeting & Exhibit has been specially exciting! We have been honored to give 3 invited talks (2 by Prof. Farinola and 1 by our young researcher Rossella Labarile), and one oral communication by postdoctoral fellow Cesar Vicente-Garcia.
Dr. Labarile has also contributed as organizer of symposium SB11 on “Biological and Bioinspired Polymers”

We’re glad to announce a new publication on Advanced Functional Materials!
A bioinspired adhesive hydrogel fiber that mimics nature’s tunable threads! 🌿🧵 Combining silk fibroin and dopamine, this innovation enables instant fiber formation with remarkable strength and adhesion, unlocking new possibilities in biomaterials, robotics, and beyond.

Read the full text of the article at: https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202414219
You can find more about the story: https://www.snexplores.org/article/spider-man-silk-sticky-web-shooter