Dr Giuseppe Di Caprio

Strathclyde Chancellor's Fellow

Biomedical Engineering

Personal statement

I am an interdisciplinary biophysicist interested in Microscopy, Quantitative Bioimage Analysis, Microfluidics, Organs-On-Chip, and Machine Learning. My doctoral studies were in novel technologies for imaging, as part of a joint program between the University of Naples Federico II and the Université Libre de Bruxelles. Following this, I spent 11 years at Harvard University, beginning in the Schonbrun Lab at the Rowland Institute, where I developed microscopy systems for imaging flow cytometry. Subsequently, I transitioned to the Kirchhausen Lab as junior faculty at the Harvard Medical School - Boston Children's Hospital, focusing on implementing computational solutions for quantifying biological data from 4D fluorescent- and 3D electron-microscopy. In 2023, I was appointed as Senior Lecturer and Chancellor's Fellow at the University of Strathclyde.

For more information, please visit our lab website.

Expertise

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Prize And Awards

Strathclyde Chancellor's Fellow: Recipient; 11/4/2023
Instructor in Pediatrics (Research Assistant Professor) - Harvard Medical School: Recipient; 1/2/2020
Research Fellow in Cell Biology - Harvard Medical School: Recipient; 1/9/2015
Post-doctoral Research Fellow - Harvard University: Recipient; 21/6/2012

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Publications

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Publications

Genetic reversal of the globin switch concurrently modulates both fetal and sickle hemoglobin and reduces red cell sickling: De Souza Daniel C, Hebert Nicolas, Esrick Erica B, Ciuculescu M Felicia, Archer Natasha M, Armant Myriam, Audureau Étienne, Brendel Christian, Di Caprio Giuseppe, Galactéros Frédéric, Liu Donghui, McCabe Amanda, Morris Emily, Schonbrun Ethan, Williams Dillon, Wood David K, Williams David A, Bartolucci Pablo, Higgins John M; Nature Communications Vol 14 (2023); https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-40923-5
Deep neural network automated segmentation of cellular structures in volume electron microscopy: Gallusser Benjamin, Maltese Giorgio, Di Caprio Giuseppe, Vadakkan Tegy John, Sanyal Anwesha, Somerville Elliott, Sahasrabudhe Mihir, O’connor Justin, Weigert Martin, Kirchhausen Tom; Journal of Cell Biology Vol 222 (2023); https://doi.org/10.1083/jcb.202208005
Inherited nuclear pore substructures template post-mitotic pore assembly: Chou Yi Ying, Upadhyayula Srigokul, Houser Justin, He Kangmin, Skillern Wesley, Scanavachi Gustavo, Dang Song, Sanyal Anwesha, Ohashi Kazuka G, Di Caprio Giuseppe, Kreutzberger Alex JB, Vadakkan Tegy John, Kirchhausen Tom; Developmental Cell Vol 56 (2021); https://doi.org/10.1016/j.devcel.2021.05.015
MetAP2 inhibition modifies hemoglobin S to delay polymerization and improves blood flow in sickle cell disease: Demers Melanie, Sturtevant Sarah, Guertin Kevin R, Gupta Dipti, Desai Kunal, Vieira Benjamin F, Li Wenjing, Hicks Alexandra, Ismail Ayman, Goncąlves Bronner P, Caprio Giuseppe Di, Schonbrun Ethan, Hansen Scott, Musayev Faik N, Safo Martin K, Wood David K, Higgins John M, Light David R; Blood Advances Vol 5, pp. 1388-1402 (2021); https://doi.org/10.1182/bloodadvances.2020003670
Design and validation of a human brain endothelial microvessel-on-a-chip open microfluidic model enabling advanced optical imaging: Salman Mootaz M, Marsh Graham, Kusters Ilja, Delincé Matthieu, Di Caprio Giuseppe, Upadhyayula Srigokul, de Nola Giovanni, Hunt Ronan, Ohashi Kazuka G, Gray Taylor, Shimizu Fumitaka, Sano Yasuteru, Kanda Takashi, Obermeier Birgit, Kirchhausen Tom; Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology Vol 8, pp. 1-16 (2020); https://doi.org/10.3389/fbioe.2020.573775
HDAC6 mediates an aggresome-like mechanism for NLRP3 and pyrin inflammasome activation: Magupalli Venkat Giri, Negro Roberto, Tian Yuzi, Hauenstein Arthur V, Caprio Giuseppe Di, Skillern Wesley, Deng Qiufang, Orning Pontus, Alam Hasan B, Maliga Zoltan, Sharif Humayun, Hu Jun Jacob, Evavold Charles L, Kagan Jonathan C, Schmidt Florian I, Fitzgerald Katherine A, Kirchhausen Tom, Li Yongqing, Wu Hao; Science Vol 369 (2020); https://doi.org/10.1126/SCIENCE.AAS8995

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Research

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Research Interests

In the Smart Microscopy Lab we focus on understanding how to connect bioimage analysis with computer-controlled microscopy to generate automated and adaptive imaging workflows and to enable quantitative and statistically meaningful results in complex biological systems. This approach brings new challenges, such as performing real-time image processing, accessing and controlling instrument hardware via suitable software, designing efficient workflows, and handling large data sets during operation. The possibilities to combine different imaging technologies, to trigger imaging modalities based on the real-time image analysis results, and to synchronize image acquisition with external devices for sample manipulation (i.e., liquid handling or cell manipulation) enable the automation of complex workflows. Such workflows allow researchers to acquire images in a less biased, more reproducible, and faster way than manual imaging by means of experiments otherwise hardly feasible.

AI-powered Smart Microscopy for Stem-Cell Engineering

Cell engineering is predicted to be part of a regenerative medicine focused future. The human Mesenchymal Stem Cells (hMSC) are a cell type of major interest that are available from bone marrow, adipose tissue, and umbilical cord sources. Over 900 hMSC clinical trials have been conducted since 2004 and thousands of academic publications on potential hMSC treatments are published yearly. Despite this significant investigative effort, only few therapeutic products containing hMSCs or their derivative cells are approved yearly, mainly due to hMSC therapies requiring extensive safety testing by an independent contract research organization, sterile cold chain, and increased surgical time.

Our goal is to introduce a completely new paradigm in stem cell culturing where the standard trial and error approach to identify a suitable recipe is substituted by quantitative and continuous optimization. We intend to implement a next-generation bio-manufacturing process in which the stimulation is finely tuned in real time, based on the specific dynamics of the population, to overcome the issues associated with biological diversity and patient-specific conditions. The possibilities to combine different imaging technologies, to trigger imaging modalities based on the real-time image analysis results, and to synchronize image acquisition with external devices for sample manipulation (i.e., liquid handling or cell manipulation) enable the automation of complex workflows.

Quantitative Absorption Microscopy - A Circulatory System on Chip

This project is dedicated to the development of material technologies for mimicking the environment of the Circulatory System on Chip. In addition to the organ-on-chip fabrication, I am interested in performing quantitative measurements of other physical characteristics of cells, such as volume, protein mass, and oxygen tension. Resolving the distribution of different measured parameters enables better understanding of not only mean values of a cell population but also subtle differences in the response of each cell to its environment, genetic differences, and exposure to small molecules.

Professional Activities

External Examiner PhD Viva: Examiner; 2023
Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR) (External organisation): Advisor; 2020
Scientific Reports (Journal): Peer reviewer; 2018
External examiner PhD Graduation: Examiner; 5/2017
Biophysical Journal (Journal): Peer reviewer; 2017
Université Libre de Bruxelles (External organisation): Advisor; 2016

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Projects

AI-powered Smart Microscopy for Stem-Cell Engineering: Di Caprio, Giuseppe (Principal Investigator); 01-Jan-2024 - 31-Jan-2027
Characterize the functional properties of blood substitute by Quantitative Absorption Cytometry (QAC): Di Caprio, Giuseppe (Principal Investigator); 01-Jan-2024 - 31-Jan-2025
Wound Healing In Space: Key challenges towards Intelligent and Enabling Sensing platforms (WHISKIES) - MAP Project: (CORA) for MAP Program SciSpacE: Di Caprio, Giuseppe (Principal Investigator) Iorio, Carlo (Principal Investigator) Ferrari, Andrea (Principal Investigator) Coppola, Giuseppe (Principal Investigator) Naydenova, Izabela (Principal Investigator) Rius, Gemma (Principal Investigator) Amirfazli, Alidad (Principal Investigator) Smoukov, Stoyan (Principal Investigator) Foster, Anna (Principal Investigator) Delogu, Lucia (Principal Investigator) Marengo, Marco (Principal Investigator) Podgorski, Thomas (Principal Investigator) Monici, Monica (Principal Investigator) Pirnay, Jean-Paul (Principal Investigator) Sebastiano, Vittorio (Principal Investigator) Dokmeci, Mehmet (Principal Investigator); The consortium of the MAP WHISKIES is multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary covering all aspects related to the gaps in scientific knowledge needed for elaborating a smart methodological framework in support of a deeper understanding of the phenomena involved in tissue healing. The results obtained will represent also a fundamental reference for modelling such phenomena both on-ground and in altered gravity conditions.; 01-Jan-2022 - 31-Jan-2023