Previous data from Noemi's postdoctoral work has uncovered conserved roles for two structurally different lipids in the early secretory pathway (ether lipids and sphingolipids) using a combination of lipidomics and a CRISPRi screen. This technique has revealed a number of interesting features such as the role of sphingolipids in the export large or bulky cargoes. Among these, collagen secretion pathways appear to be hypersensitive to sphingolipid depletion but the mechanism behind has not been explored yet. Actually, collagen export seems to have very specific physical requirements at the membrane level. However, even if lipids are the major components of membranes and they control to a great extent membrane biophysical properties, little is known about the lipid requirements for the export of big cargoes including ECM components. 

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Using multidisciplinary apporaches that include mass spectrometry we are studying how lipid metabolism is orchestrated during conditions in which collagen secretion is dysregulated towards the development of metabolic strategies that can help improving collagen homeostasis.