Teaching activities are carried as a faculty member of the board of the doctoral programme in Physical, Chemical, and Materials Sciences and Technologies, and as an adjunct professor in the master degree course in Physics at the University of Calabria, Italy.

The course of Molecular Modeling can be chosen within the PhD in Physical, Chemical and Materials Sciences and Technologies. This doctoral programme covers several distinct areas, ranging from basic science to applications and technology transfer. The aim is training researchers with a high scientific qualification, able to manage multidisciplinary collaborations and develop projects with a high impact.

This course provides basic knowledge in the field of molecular modeling, constituting an introduction to the use of theoretical and computational methods to simulate complex molecular systems. These techniques are used in a broad range of fields that include computational chemistry, molecular biology, drug design, and materials science.

The course is tailored on a case-to-case basis, depending on the necessities and background expertise of the participants. Typical topics are:

      • Introductions to the modeling of molecular interactions
      • The concept of energy landscape for a molecular system
      • Computational techniques for sampling molecular conformations
      • Advanced modeling methods and simulation techniques

The course of Computational Biophysics is part of the MD in Physics at the University of Calabria. One of the areas of this MD is represented by the curriculum of Physics of Matter, which also includes educational sub-curricula in Biophysics and in Biomedicine.

The lessons provides all the necessary knowledge for modeling biological systems through the use of numerical simulation methods. The students are introduced to molecular dynamics modeling and simulation techniques, in the broader context of the current biophysical methods to investigate soft matter.

The lessons cover six main modules (four theory and two practice topics):

      • Representative biosystems and hierarchy of simulation models
      • Basic concepts of statistical mechanics and sampling algorithms
      • Typical components of a molecular mechanics force field
      • Advanced simulation methods and accelerated sampling
      • Hands-on introduction to molecular modeling practice
      • Training on molecular dynamics and data analysis

A number of other courses have been held in the past as an assistant lecturer or assistant professor, including the following:

      • Protein Structure and Modeling, at post-MD level
      • Data Acquisition and Treatment, for the MD in Physics
      • Mechanics, for various BD courses of the Faculty of Science
      • Introduction to the Experimental Method, for various BD courses of the Faculty of Science

• bruno.rizzuti@cnr.it