Leonardo Sacconi, PhD
Research Interests:
- Interplay between sub-cellular alterations of calcium release and T-Tubular defects in cardiac diseases.
- Real-time optical manipulation of cardiac conduction in intact hearts.
- Structural mapping of action potential propagation pathways through healthy and diseased heart.
Brief CV:
Leonardo Sacconi received his Master's degree in Physics in 2001 at the University of Florence and then moved to Trento, where he obtained his PhD in Physics in 2004. He spent one year as a visiting scientist in the Watt Webb laboratory at Cornell University. There he developed an imaging method to optically record neuronal action potentials using non-linear microscopy. When he returned to Italy, to the laboratory of Professor Francesco S Pavone at European Laboratory for Nonlinear Spectroscopy, he started new research projects focused on the in vivo functional imaging of brain by non-linear microscopy. In this period, Leonardo developed a system called Random Access Multi-Photon (RAMP) microscope that was capable to record action potentials from multiple neurons simultaneously. The RAMP microscope was also exploited to investigate the action potential propagation in cardiac cells. This represents the beginning of his independent activities in the field of cardiovascular research. He is now a Researcher at the National Institute of Optics in Florence where he is developing innovative imaging methodologies to increase the understanding of cardiac physiology. In 2020 Leonardo joined the IEKM in Freiburg as a senior scientist.
Selected Publications:
- Ferrantini C, Pioner JM [...] Sacconi L, Parmeggiani C. Development of Light-Responsive Liquid Crystalline Elastomers to Assist Cardiac Contraction. Circ Res 2019/124:e44–e54
- Scardigli M, Muellenbroich C, Margoni E [...] Sacconi L. Real-time optical manipulation of cardiac conduction in intact hearts. J Physiol 2018/596:3841-3858
- Scardigli M, Crocini C [...] Rog-Zielinska EA, Kohl P [...] Sacconi L. Quantitative assessment of passive electrical properties of the cardiac T-tubular system by FRAP microscopy. PNAS USA 2017/114:5737-5742
- Crocini C, Ferrantini C [...] Sacconi L. Optogenetics design of mechanistically-based stimulation patterns for cardiac defibrillation. Sci Rep 2016/6:35628
- Crocini C, Coppini R [...] Sacconi L. Defects in T-tubular electrical activity underlie local alterations of calcium release in heart failure. PNAS USA 2014/42:15196-15201
- Ferrantini C, Crocini C [...] Sacconi L. The transverse-axial tubular system of cardiomyocytes. Cell Mol Life Sci 2013/70:4695-4710
- Yan P, Acker C*, Zhou WL*, Lee P*, Bollensdorff C*, Negrean A*, Lotti J*, Sacconi L*, Antic SD, Kohl P, Mansvelder HD, Pavone FS, Loew LM. Palette of fluorinated voltage sensitive hemicyanine dyes. PNAS USA 2012/109:20443-20448
- Sacconi L, Ferrantini C, Lotti J [...] Pavone FS. Action potential propagation in transverse-axial tubular system is impaired in heart failure. PNAS USA 2012/109:5815–5819
- Nucciotti V*, Stringari C*, Sacconi L*, Vanzi F* [...] Pavone FS. Probing myosin structural conformation in vivo by second-harmonic generation microscopy. PNAS USA 2010/107:7763-7768
- Sacconi L, Dombeck DA, Webb WW. Overcoming photodamage in second-harmonic generation microscopy: Real-time optical recording of neuronal action potentials. PNAS USA 2006/103:3124-3129
* Equally contributing authors