Dr. Bongarzone Italia

Italia Bongarzone earned her degree in Biological Sciences in 1983. Until 1998, she focused on the genetics and biochemistry of the RET and TRK oncogenes, which she identified in thyroid tumors, thereby contributing to the early development of molecular biology in oncology. Following this, she directed her efforts towards the advancement of proteomic methodologies that enable the simultaneous separation and identification of multiple proteins through mass spectrometry. To enhance her expertise in this field, she spent a year at Dr. Bachi's laboratory and participated in short-term projects at the Liotta and Petricoin Institute in Maryland, USA. This work was funded from the early 2000s through a program by the Ministry of Health aimed at developing proteomic technology in close collaboration with the aforementioned laboratories. In 2020, with the introduction of a mass spectrometry platform for tissue imaging at the Fondazione-INT, she began to focus on both spatial proteomics and spatial lipidomics of clinical and non-clinical tissues. She manages the MALDI-imaging Laboratory, which includes a shared MALDI platform among three institutions in Milan: the Neurologico Besta Institute and the Policlinico Ca Granda. Consequently, the Laboratory is characterized by a multidisciplinary approach that lays the groundwork for beneficial integrations and collaborative projects.