Vincenzo Carnevale received B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in Physics from the University of Pisa and a PhD from SISSA – Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati in Trieste, Italy.
The Carnevale research group uses statistical physics and machine learning approaches to investigate sequence-structure-function relations in proteins. A central theme of the group’s research is how interactions give rise to collective phenomena and complex emergent behaviors. At the level of genes, the group is interested in epistasis – the complex entanglement phenomenon that causes amino acids to evolve in a concerted fashion – and how this shapes molecular evolution. At the cellular level, the group investigates how intermolecular interactions drive biomolecules toward self-organization and pattern formation. A long-term goal of the group is understanding the molecular underpinnings of electrical signaling in excitable cells. Toward these goals, the group applies and actively develops an extensive arsenal of theoretical and computational approaches including statistical (mean)field theories, Monte Carlo and molecular dynamics simulations, statistical inference of generative models, and deep learning.