Synthesis and characterization of fluourescent sigma-1 receptor ligands aimed at the Preclinical validation of a novel drug for treating Wolfram syndrome and Type 2A Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease

Position: Research appointment (pre-doc) Institute: Uni. Bari
Posted on: 30/04/2026 Deadline: 15/05/2026

Scientific-Disciplinary Group

03/CHEM-07 - Medicinal, Toxicological, Nutraceutical-Food, Fermentation And Health And Wellbeing Products Chemistry

Description

MAMs are intracellular hotspots for: Ca2+ signaling, redox regulation, lipid exchange, mitochondrial quality control and unfolded protein response pathway. They are altered in conditions such as Wolfram syndrome (WS) or Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease Type 2 disease (CMT2A) that cause severe impairments in the quality of life (WS and CMT2A). Alteration of Ca2+ transfer from ER to mitochondria is a hallmark of WS and CMT2A. Its restoration by the activation of the sigma-1 receptor chaperone (S1R) alleviates the cellular and behavioral impairments. SIT3060 is a potent selective S1R agonist with an optimal preclinical profile. This project aims to confirm SIT3060 the compound efficacy in relevant preclinical models of WS and CMT2A, delineate the cellular mode of action on mitochondrial metabolism, generate innovative tools like quantitative fluorescent S1R ligands to demonstrate the target engagement or allow subcellular imaging, and consolidate the ADME-Tox profile.

Number of positions

1

Funding body

Università degli studi di Bari

How to apply

Other