Scientific Director

Pierluigi Scalia, native of Caltanissetta, Italy, is an Italian-American MD PhD and social entrepreneur. Graduated in Medicine and Surgery with highest score and honors at the University of Catania, he continued his post-doctoral career in the United States with the accredited title of Doctor in Molecular Endocrinology and obtaining his permanent residency and following US naturalization due to his outstanding work in areas of national interest. He has gained more than two decades experience in the field of basic and translational research in the academic and private fields as shown by the several international peer-reviewed scientific journals he has authored in the oncology field> He is also holder of patented research on the tumorigenic mechanism of blood vessel proliferation and formation. His skills spans from the identification of tumor biomarkers to the validation of molecular and genomic tests to which are added his experiences in managing multidisciplinary infrastructural projects, professional and academic education, patenting, biotechnology start-ups and consultancy on international projects in the field of molecular medicine and oncology such as the “Tumaini” project in Tanzania. Pierluigi is also a technologist under the major US registry of Molecular Biologists and Molecular Pathologists (ACSP) and is the co-founder of two US biotech companies (in California and Delaware) for which he was the scientific director. He held academic positions as adjunct professor in various US colleges including that of professor of genetics at Azusa University’s college of biology in Los Angeles and at the Sbarro Institute for Cancer Research and Molecular Medicine at Temple University, Philadelphia.