Award for Best Crystallographic Thesis 2025

Gabriele Diana, previously a graduate in Medical Biotechnology at the University of Trieste and currently a PhD Student in the Topf and Rosenthal labs at CSSB, has received the AIC “Fiorenzo Mazzi” Award for Best Crystallographic Thesis 2025.

The Italian Crystallographic Association (AIC), founded in 1967, is a non-profit scientific organisation promoting the study of crystal structures and the development of crystallography in Italy. It encourages interaction between researchers across various disciplines, supports educational dissemination, and organises scientific meetings and schools to foster collaboration and share knowledge. The AIC awards recognise significant contributions to crystallography by Italian scientists. Gabriele received this award as part of the AIC’s 51st Meeting, held from 2-5 September 2025, at the University of Florence in Italy. 

This thesis investigates Mycobacterium abscessus salicylate synthase (Mab-SaS), a key enzyme in the iron acquisition pathway, as a promising drug target for treating multidrug-resistant infections in patients with cystic fibrosis. Mab-SaS was successfully expressed and purified, then screened against fragment libraries using a range of biophysical characterisation assays, leading to candidate molecules for X-ray crystallographic analysis. Structural studies of promising fragments, such as Picolinate and related compounds, revealed conserved catalytic site features as well as important conformational differences between the co-crystallised structures and homologous proteins. These findings provide a structural basis for developing new inhibitors against Mab-SaS to combat resistant infections.

Congratulations to Gabriele on this outstanding achievement!