Current Position: Honorary Professor of Padova University
Past Position: Full Professor of General Pathology, Medical School, University of Padova, and Head of the Viral Oncology Unit and Laboratory of Pediatric HIV/AIDS, IOV-IRCCS, Padova, Italy.
International Work Experience: Researcher at the National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, USA, in the Laboratory of Viral Carcinogenesis in 1980 and the Laboratory of Tumor Cell Biology in 1984, 1985, 1988.
Major Research Interests: She has dedicated her career to studying oncogenic retroviruses. Her early research (1976-1983) focused on virus-host interactions in murine models. Since 1983 her research has shifted to human retroviruses, both in experimental models and clinical settings. Her contributions have significantly advanced the understanding of virological and immunological factors related to mother-to-child transmission of HIV and the progression of pediatric HIV infection. Her studies were also among the first to investigate the multiparametric characteristics of premature immune senescence and aging in children with perinatally acquired HIV. Over the past two decades, her research interests have expanded to include the study of tumors in immunocompromised patients, and on the role of human reverse transcriptase telomerase in the onset and progression of both virus-dependent and virus-independent human tumors.
Scientific Publications: More than 300 articles published in peer-reviewed journals.
