Massimiliano Gnecchi
Massimiliano Gnecchi is a fully trained cardiologist and a PhD in Genetics and Molecular Biology. He is currently Associate Professor of Cardiology at the University of Pavia (Italy) and attending physician at the ICU of the Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo of Pavia. He is also a Faculty Member of the School of Cardiology and of the PhD program in Translational Medicine at the University of Pavia and Honorary Professor at the Department of Medicine of the University of Cape Town, South Africa. Dr. Gnecchi’s main clinical interests are: treatment of ischemic heart disease and risk stratification of patients who suffered acute myocardial infarction. Dr. Gnecchi has been co-investigator in several randomized international clinical trials. He is also very active in the field of translational research, in particular in the field of regenerative medicine. After completing his training in Cardiology, Dr. Gnecchi moved to the USA where he worked for 4 years in Prof Victor Dzau's laboratory at Harvard Medical School and at Duke University. During those years, he studied the mechanisms of action through which bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) heal infarcted hearts. The results of his research, published in Nature Medicine (more than 1000 citations), demonstrated for the first time that MSC act mainly through cardio protective paracrine mechanisms. Several other groups confirmed his original observation and paracrine mechanisms in stem cell action are now considered of pivotal importance. After winning a prestigious National Research Award, Dr Gnecchi relocated to Italy in 2006 and became an independent investigator. His current research interests include: stem cell paracrine mechanisms, adult stem cell differentiation, disease modeling using iPSC technology and identification of novel biomarkers for the diagnosis and risk stratification of patients suffering acute coronary syndrome. Dr Gnecchi collaborates with several national and international research groups and his research expertise is testified to by several publications in prestigious scientific journals. Since October 2015 Dr. Gnecchi is Chair of the Cardiovascular Committee of the International Society of Cell Therapy.
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