Journal of Biomolecular Research & Therapeutics

Gianfranco Peluso

Biography

Prof. Gianfranco Peluso graduated magna cum laude and special mention in Medicine at the University of Naples and received his Doctorate (Ph.D.) from the University of Perugia. He was research scientist at the Columbia University, New York and visiting Professor at the University of Texas, Houston, in 1986 and 1996, respectively. He has been Director of the Department of Experimental Oncology at the National Cancer Institute and has coordinated the European Glioblastoma Research Group (1999-2004).

Research Interest

Prof. Peluso authored many papers published on major international peer-reviewed scientific journals on his work in the fields of Human healthcare, Biotechnology and Agri-food. Human healthcare: His interest focused on elucidating the role of specific nutrients, such as carnitines, on mitochondrial function and studying whether perturbation of the carnitine system can lead to diseases and cancer. His original work on the identification and characterisation of the carnitine system in different models, is now centred on the role of these compounds in lipid signaling as well as on the use of carnitine derivatives as anticancer drugs based on their effects on the invasive potential of tumour cell lines. Biotechnology: Another key activity, in which he is interested in, is in the field of nanoscience and nanotechnology applied to biomedicine, life science and food security, for: a) development of nanostructured polymers as novel delivery platform to minimize drug degradation upon administration, prevent undesirable side effects, and sustain and/or increase drug’s bioavailability in a targeted area, and b) synthesis of biodegradable polymers for innovative food packaging to improve shelf life, microbiological safety and sensory properties of foods without affecting their organoleptic and nutritional characteristics.