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Supervisor

Iolanda Francolini

Full Professor of Industrial Chemistry; Coordinator of HEAL-4WARD

Sapienza University of Rome – Department of Chemistry

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“HEAL-4WARD brings together chemistry, materials science, microbiology and clinical insight to transform how we prevent, detect and treat biofilm-associated wound infections. What excites me most is the opportunity to train a new generation of researchers who can move confidently across disciplines and turn fundamental science into solutions with real clinical relevance.”

Background

Scientific background

Iolanda Francolini trained as an Industrial Chemist at Sapienza University of Rome, graduating with honours in 2000, and obtained a PhD in Industrial Chemical Processes in 2005. A nine-month period at the Center for Biofilm Engineering at Montana State University introduced a strong biofilm perspective into her work on antimicrobial polymeric materials.Since joining Sapienza, Iolanda has developed an interdisciplinary research programme spanning polymer synthesis and functionalisation, antimicrobial and antifouling biomaterials, drug-delivery nanostructures, colloidal self-assembly and advanced materials characterisation. She became Full Professor of Industrial Chemistry in 2025 and has authored more than 100 peer-reviewed publications.

Personal background

Iolanda Francolini has always been fascinated by how small changes in molecular architecture can generate major changes in material behaviour and biological function. This curiosity led her from polymer chemistry to biofilms, antimicrobial biomaterials and nanomedicine, where meaningful progress depends on combining different scientific languages.She particularly enjoys mentoring young researchers and building international environments in which chemistry, materials science and biology converge on challenging healthcare problems.

key publications

  • Brugnoli, B., Frezza, C., Mariano, A., Jacob, P. L., Diacono, A., Irvine, D., Axioti, E., Del Giudice, A., Galantini, L., Piozzi, A., Scotto d’Abusco, A., Taresco, V., Francolini, I. (2026). Nanoscale organization, thermal properties, and encapsulation performance of star-shaped poly (L-Lactide): Effect of glycerol-and diglycerol-based core geometry. Polymer, 129963. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.polymer.2026.129963

 

  • La Gambina, V., Rocchi, L. A., Sennato, S., Radiom, M., Schillén, K., Hetherington, C., Francolini, I., Vetica, F., Leonelli, F., Del Giudice, A., di Gregorio, M. C., Mezzenga, R., Galantini, L. (2026) Exact Stoichiometry Far-Off Neutrality Catanionic Nanotubes: Unconventional Self-Assembly of Oppositely Charged Surfactants. Journal of the American Chemical Society 148, 18733–18745. https://doi.org/10.1021/jacs.5c21811

 

  • Brugnoli, B., Axioti, E., Jacob, P. L., Berfi, N. A., Lei, L., Couturaud, B., Chauhan, V. M., Cavanagh, R. J., Galantini, L., Francolini, I., Taresco, V. (2025) Tailoring the Properties of Polydiacetylene Nanosystems for Enhanced Cell Tracking Through Poly(glycerol Adipate) Blending: An In Vitro and In Vivo Investigation. Macromolecular Chemistry and Physics, e202500259. https://doi.org/10.1002/macp.202500259

 

  • Brugnoli, B., Mariano, A., Simonis, B., Bombelli, C., Sennato, S., Piozzi, A., Taresco, V., Chauhan, V. M., Howdle, S. M., Scotto d’Abusco, A., Francolini, I. (2023) Self-Assembled Chitosan–Sodium Usnate Drug Delivery Nanosystems: Synthesis, Characterization, Stability Studies, In Vitro Cytotoxicity and In Vivo Biocompatibility Against 143B Cells. Carbohydrate Polymer Technologies and Applications 6, 100373. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.carpta.2023.100373

 

  • Di Consiglio, M., Sturabotti, E., Brugnoli, B., Piozzi, A., Migneco, L. M., Francolini, I. (2023) Synthesis of Sustainable Eugenol/Hydroxyethylmethacrylate-Based Polymers with Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Properties. Polymer Chemistry 14, 432–442. https://doi.org/10.1039/D2PY01183B

Project Involvement and Roles

As Coordinator of HEAL-4WARD, Iolanda Francolini oversees the scientific and strategic implementation of the network and promotes integration across its academic, clinical and industrial partners.

  • Overall project coordination, consortium alignment and scientific integration.
  • Supervisor of DC1, together with co-supervisor Prof. Luciano Galantini, focusing on antimicrobial peptidomimetics and polymer nanomaterials for biofilm degradation and treatment.
  • Supervisor of DC8, together with co-supervisors Dr Alessandra Del Giudice and Prof. Rosanna Papa, focusing on multifunctional nanostructures for the treatment of multispecies wound biofilms.
  • Contribution to doctoral recruitment, training, secondments, dissemination and the translation of project results towards healthcare applications.

Current activities

Iolanda Francolini leads research at the Department of Chemistry at Sapienza University of Rome, working at the interface of polymer chemistry, soft matter and biomaterials. Her group designs, synthesises and characterises functional polymers, polymer nanomaterials and supramolecular systems for biomedical and environmental applications, with particular emphasis on antimicrobial and antibiofilm materials, nanostructured drug delivery, bio-based antioxidant polymers and functional surfaces.

Her research combines molecular design with advanced physicochemical and ultrastructural characterisation and biological assessment through interdisciplinary collaborations. Alongside her research, Iolanda teaches Science of Technology of Polymers and Macromolecular Science, supervises doctoral and early-career researchers, and contributes to research strategy and doctoral training at Sapienza.