Maria Giovanna Francipane

Maria Giovanna Francipane earned her Bachelor of Science (2004) and Master of Science (2006), both with honors in Medical Biotechnology, followed by a PhD in Immunopharmacology (2010) from the University of Palermo (Italy). She subsequently joined the University of Pittsburgh (USA), where she held academic positions as Postdoctoral Researcher (2011–2015), Research Associate (2016), and Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Pathology (2017–2020). During this time, she was also affiliated with the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine.

In mid-2020, she returned to Palermo. Since September of that year, Dr. Francipane has served as Principal Investigator in Regenerative Medicine and Head of the Hepatobiliary Unit at Fondazione Ri.MED.

Dr. Francipane brings 19 years of multidisciplinary research experience in the life sciences, with expertise spanning oncology, stem cell biology, organogenesis, and tissue engineering. Her academic contributions demonstrate a strong foundation in translational research, strategic leadership, and interdisciplinary collaboration.

Her current research focuses on developing regenerative medicine strategies for the treatment of biliary diseases. Particularly notable is a recent study published in Advanced Healthcare Materials, in which Dr. Francipane and her team presented a novel multiphasic tubular scaffold engineered to closely replicate the size and function of the human common bile duct. Designed to address severe biliary complications such as post-operative strictures, this innovation—protected through a patent application—represents a significant advancement in bioengineered solutions for bile duct repair. In parallel, her team focuses on refining biliary cell culture techniques and developing three-dimensional organoids to serve both as potential cell sources for regenerative medicine and as platforms for studying biliary development and disease.

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