Bio:
Prof Lunardi received his master's degree in Biology in 2000 and the PhD in Molecular Biotechnology in 2004 from the University of Pisa, Italy. Then he moved to the University of Trieste-Italy where he worked as a postdoc until 2009 on a project aimed at characterizing the evolutionarily conserved interactome of the oncosuppressor p53. From winter 2009 to spring 2014, he worked at Beth Israel Deaconess Cancer Center and Harvard Medical School of Boston as a senior investigator first and instructor of medicine later, studying the oncogenic mechanisms of prostate cancer, their role in the response of cancer cells to standard oncology approaches, and the establishment of innovative therapeutic strategies. In the summer of 2014, thanks to the Giovanni Armenise Harvard Foundation Career Development Award, he opened the Armenise-Harvard Laboratory of Cancer Biology and Genetics at the Department of Cellular, Computational and Integrative Biology -CIBIO- of the University of Trento-Italy. Since then, Lunardi’s group research has focused on generating and studying sophisticated in vitro and in vivo models of human cancer onset, progression and resistance to therapies, with the ultimate goal of identifying reliable biomarkers and novel molecular targets for personalized, efficient and sustainable cancer treatment.
Abstract:
Organoids technology is revolutionizing the field of life science by sculpturing with unprecedented precision our knowledge about cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in adult tissue homeostasis, physiology and disease. From the pioneering work of Cleaver's group on intestinal cryptic organoids in 2009, almost all organs and tissues can currently be recapitulated in vitro by 3D culture of adult tissue resident progenitors, embryonic stem cells or induced pluripotent stem cells. Under specific growth conditions, these cells undergo self-renewal, differentiation into different lineages, and self-organization into three-dimensional structures that mimic tissue architecture. By exploiting mouse prostate organoids our group has defined molecular mechanisms involved in quiescence, lineage commitment, and genomic stability of adult prostate progenitors, shedding light on possible risk factors for prostate tumorigenesis.
Prof. Andrea Lunardi has been invited by the Platform for Stem Cell Research and Regenerative Medicine (SCRM).
The DBMR Research Conference takes place from 5 pm – 6 pm.
