Dr. Nicholas de Mojana di Cologna, PhD
Dr. Nicholas de Mojana di Cologna was born and raised in Brazil and is of mixed Brazilian and Italian heritage.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences from the University of Brasilia (UnB). During his undergraduate studies, he received fellowships from the Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq), a government agency under the Brazilian Ministry of Science and Technology. These fellowships allowed him to pursue research under the mentorship of Dr. Carlos André Ricart at the Laboratory of Protein Chemistry and Biochemistry (LBQP) in the Molecular Biology Department of the University of Brasília’s Biology Institute. After graduating, he continued at the LBQP to pursue a master’s degree in Molecular Biology, also funded by a CNPq fellowship. During this time, he delved deep into the field of proteins, learning biochemistry, biophysics, and proteomics techniques. His undergraduate and master’s projects focused on understanding how filamentous fungi respond to the availability of different carbon sources in the production of highly specialized multi-enzymatic complexes.
Recently, Dr. Cologna completed his PhD in the Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program (Microbiology and Immunology concentration) at the University of Florida’s College of Medicine, under the mentorship of Dr. Jacqueline Abranches at the Lemos-Abranches Laboratory (Oral Biology Department, College of Dentistry). During this period, he continued exploring proteins, now from the perspective of microbiology. His research involved studying Streptococcus mutans, the primary causative agent of dental caries, where he characterized functional amyloids of an important virulence factor and investigated the roles and mechanisms of a glycosylation machinery crucial to bacterial pathophysiology.
Currently, Dr. Cologna is working as a postdoctoral researcher at the Research Foundation for the State University of New York (RF-SUNY), University at Albany, in Dr. Alex Valm’s lab. His current research focuses on understanding how the structure of complex oral biofilms correlates with various pathologies. He is investigating how different microbes physically interact within a biofilm, employing a combination of molecular microbiology and fluorescence imaging techniques.
In his free time, he enjoys reading books, particularly the classics, despite knowing that it is unlikely he will finish them all in one lifetime. He also appreciates modern literature (though he struggles to keep pace with Stephen King’s prolific writing). Additionally, he has a passion for theater, especially musicals, enjoys playing video games, and loves cats.