accesses on this page. Born at Sant'Elpidio a mare (Ascoli Piceno, Italy) on February 9, 1947.
High school degree (Liceo Scientifico) in 1965. Student in Physics at the
University of Pisa, passing the exams of the first and second year, then
changes to Philosophy studies, leaving off after several exams.
From 1974 to 1979 he collaborates with the Istituto di Fisica Atomica
e Molecolare of the National research Council (CNR) in Pisa, working on
the analogue processing of signals [1]. During this period he acquires
abilities in basic physics, electronics (processing of low signals, improvement
of signal-to-noise ratio, radiofrequency techniques, synchronous detectors,
feedback control systems) and optics.
In 1979 he obtains a position at the Istituto di Mutagenesi e Differenziamento
of the CNR in Pisa, acquiring skills on the use of cytological and cytogenetic
markers. He becomes interested in interchro-matid and interchromosome recombination
phenomena for applications in the study of DNA replication and cell transformation
(cancerogenesis) and in genetic toxicology testing [2 ÷ 39]. He
is chiefly involved in the statistical elaboration and analysis of data,
but also gives relevant contributions to their interpreta-tion. He finds
out how to exploit his previously acquired skills in physics in setting
up techniques of microdensitometry and quantitative microscopy [12].
In 1989 he publishes a statistical method for identification of fragile
sites [25, 30] which has been proposed as a routine method for this type
of search by G. R. Sutherland and D. H. Ledbetter (G. R. Sutherland and
D. H. Ledbetter, 1989, Human Gene Mapping 10 - Report of the Committee
on cytoge-netic markers. Cytogenet. Cell. Genet. 51:452-458). This method
allowed to find relationships between fragile sites and chromosome rearrangements
in cultured mammalian cells [33] and is still used and cited in papers
published by important international journals.
During 1991 Tullio Mariani moves to the Istituto di Biofisica of the
CNR in Pisa, to participate in the European Community project BRITE EURAM
145, and contributes to the design, assembly and testing of devices for
advanced microscopy [40, 41, 44, 48]. In particular, he participates in
the ralization of the first atomic force microscope (AFM) operative in
Italy [44]. He merges this new activity to the previously acquired skills
and builds an atomic force microscope specifically dedicated to cytological
investigations [49], which has already produced new information on chromosome
structure [46, 49, 50, 52, 54, 55, 59, 61, 64, 66, 69]. In the meanwhile,
he carries on the research activity started at the Istituto di Mutagenesi
e Differenziamento [42, 43].
In 1994, he promoted a study on constitutive chromosomal anomalies,
based on the statistical analysis of information retrieved from specific
data banks. This study, carried out in collaboration with other institutions
of the Italian CNR and of the University of Pisa, has already yielded
relevant results [45, 47, 51, 53, 57, 68, 75].
The final goal of this research will be to lay the ground for a thorough
analysis of chromosome recombi-nation phenomena by means of specifically
designed scanning probe microscopes (SPM).
In recent years, the activity of Tullio Mariani has been directed to
the search for low-cost SPM techniques. In particular, he worked out inexpensive,
reliable force sensors and topographic detectors, suited for didactic,
industrial and metrologic purposes [56, 58, 60, 62, 63]; modulated diode
lasers for use in AFM [67]; alternative scanning devices based on commercial
electroacoustic transducers [65, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74]. Finally, he constructed
and described in a paper a three-dimensions scanning device which broadens
the applicability of SPM to image areas greater than one square millimeter
[73, 74]. At present, there are no devices, neither commercial nor experimental,
that can challenge such a performance.
From 1996 Tullio Mariani is the answerable person for the research
line “AFM Microscopy” of the Istituto di Biofisica. From January 1997 he
is head of the new department “Microscopia a Forza Atomica”. He also is
the Co-ordinator of the Special Project ADMIS - Approccio Didattico alle
Microscopie Subnanometriche (Educational Approach to Subnanometer Microscopies).
Languages: Italian, English, Spanish. Basic notions of French and German
languages.