From our campuses

Eighteen years of research, innovation, and scientific collaboration, with an increasingly international outlook. Fondazione Italiana Fegato ETS celebrated its 18th anniversary with an event that went beyond mere celebration—serving primarily as an opportunity to trace its journey and take stock of the new frontiers in liver disease research. Throughout this journey, the FIF has progressively consolidated its role within the scientific community, building partnerships in Italy and worldwide, and developing an approach capable of linking research, innovation, prevention, and treatment. Highlighting the global scale of the Foundation’s network, video greetings were screened from researchers and representatives of scientific institutions across various countries: from the Philippines to Argentina, Mexico, Brazil, and Indonesia. Among them were Loraine Kay Cabral, Secretary of the ASEAN Liver Initiative and former FIF fellow; Graciela Mazzone of Universidad Austral in Buenos Aires; Norberto Chavez Tapia, Director of the Gastroenterology Department at Medica Sur in Mexico and former FIF fellow; Fatima Theresinha Costa Rodrigues Guma of UFRGS – Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul; Eddy Giri-Rachman Putra from BRIN, the National Research and Innovation Agency of Indonesia; and Renato Solidum, Secretary of the DOST – Department of Science and Technology of the Philippines. “Fondazione Italiana Fegato in the Global Scientific Landscape: From the Bench to Bedside, Bridging Innovation, Prevention, and the Future” was the theme of the institutional panel—a discussion exploring the ongoing transformations in biomedical research and the opportunities unlocked by cross-disciplinary synergy, emerging technologies, and international expertise. Panel participants included Claudio Tiribelli, President of the “Fondazione Italiana Fegato ETS”; Guido Sanguinetti, Full Professor and Group Leader of the Machine Learning and Systems Biology Group at SISSA; Gianluca Tell, Head of the Department of Medicine at the University of Udine; and Umberto Baccarani, Professor of Surgery at the University of Udine and transplant surgeon on the liver and kidney team at the Friuli Centrale University Health Authority (ASUFC). The discussion highlighted one of the critical challenges in contemporary research: translating benchside discoveries into tangible tools to improve the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of liver diseases. In this transition, cross-pollination among scientific research, clinical medicine, technology, and knowledge transfer plays an increasingly vital role. Eighteen years after its inception, FIF reaffirms its vocation: serving as a bridge between knowledge and health, laboratory discovery and clinical care—a rich legacy of expertise and partnerships primed to tackle the future of liver research.

Dr. Schär has taken another step in its innovation strategy applied to specialised nutrition with the inauguration, close to the Dr. Schär R&D Centre at Area Science Park in Trieste, of a high-tech pilot plant designed to be used also with artificial intelligence to accelerate product development and optimise the transition from research to industrial production. The facility will support the company’s main business areas, from gluten-free products to medical nutrition, while strengthening the role of the Centre as the company’s international reference point for innovation. Built with an investment of approximately €1.2 million, the new pilot plant covers an area of 453 square metres and is fully wired and digitalised. The facility makes it possible to collect and analyse, in an integrated manner, the data generated by the different machines, enabling a significant evolution in the way formulations are developed and validated. In this context, technological development and a strong commitment to sustainability come together to support the evolution of processes and ensure increasingly high quality standards, in line with the vision of the South Tyrol-based company: transforming specialised nutrition into an everyday experience capable of combining science, safety and the pleasure of food. “This investment represents a significant step in the evolution of our innovation model because it enables us to strengthen, in a tangible way, the integration and continuity between research and industrial development. Our goal is to accelerate the transformation of knowledge into solutions that can be applied on an industrial scale and to further expand the potential of our activities by anticipating the future needs of specialised nutrition and contributing to driving its evolution worldwide,” said Virna Cerne, Senior Director of Global Research & Development, Dr. Schär R&D Centre. The new pilot plant becomes part of a well-established and highly specialised ecosystem. Opened in 2003, the Dr. Schär R&D Centre brings together a team of 35 researchers engaged in the development of new products and technologies, with expertise ranging from food chemistry and biotechnology to raw material research and the implementation of agronomic projects. Its activities also include the identification of packaging solutions and the sensory evaluation of products, supported by dedicated panels. The Centre supports every stage of the innovation process, from prototype design through to scaling-up across the company’s 12 production plants, including intermediate-scale testing to verify and optimise formulations before industrial production. “This integrated approach allows us to fully leverage the multidisciplinary expertise of our team, to work across increasingly broad and complex application areas, and to progressively expand the scope of our activities,” continues Cerne. “In this way, we are able to put our scientific and technological knowledge at the service of different nutritional needs, developing increasingly targeted and effective solutions that respond to people’s real needs.” Alongside the gluten-free market, in which the company is the global leader, research also extends to medical nutrition, including the development of low-protein products for kidney disease and nutritional solutions for ketogenic diets used in the treatment of drug-resistant epilepsy and metabolic disorders, as well as new and emerging areas of nutritional application. This ongoing commitment has resulted in a solid body of know-how, reflected in 15 patent families (43 individual patents), and in an integrated approach that combines nutritional quality, safety, taste and sustainability throughout the entire value chain.

A delegation from the Republic of Kosovo, led by the Minister of Industry, Entrepreneurship, Trade and Innovation, Mimoza Kusari Lila, visited Area Science Park today with the aim of learning more about the activities of the national research institution and gaining insights into the development and management model of its science and technology park. Accompanying the Minister was the Ambassador of the Republic of Kosovo to Italy, Nita Shala. Both were in Trieste to take part in the economic forum “Doing Business in Kosovo,” an event dedicated to strengthening economic, trade, and investment relations between Kosovo and the Friuli Venezia Giulia region. The President of Area Science Park, Professor Caterina Petrillo. welcomed Minister Kusari Lila and Ambassador Shala, and presented the model developed by Area Science Park: a well-established research and innovation ecosystem that has recently integrated research and technological infrastructures within its framework. The delegation’s interest stems from a project launched by the Kosovar government to transform a large disused area in Prizren into an innovation ecosystem capable of integrating research, technology transfer, innovative entrepreneurship, and investment attraction. The delegation also explored various aspects of the project, ranging from logistics and services available to its tenants to sustainability and site management. “We were delighted to welcome the Kosovo delegation today and share the experience and best practices that we have developed and tested over nearly fifty years since the institution was founded,” said the President of Area Science Park, Caterina Petrillo. “Area can rely on extensive experience in capacity building and in sharing models, expertise, and tools to support the development of research and innovation ecosystems. Making this wealth of knowledge available to organizations engaged in transformation processes represents an important opportunity for collaboration and exchange for us.”  

Professor Giovanni Comelli has been appointed President of the Board of Directors of Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste S.C.p.A., the non-profit company of national interest that manages one of the world’s most advanced research infrastructures based on the use of synchrotron light and free-electron lasers. A Full Professor of Experimental Physics of Matter and Applications at the University of Trieste, author of more than 250 scientific publications, and active in numerous national and European research programs and scientific infrastructures, Comelli was designated as a member of the new Board of Directors by the Italian Minister of Universities and Research (MUR), Anna Maria Bernini, and appointed President by the Shareholders’ Assembly. He succeeds Professor Alfonso Franciosi, who has retired from the University of Trieste after leading Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste for more than twenty years. Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste is owned by Area Science Park, the majority shareholder with 55.87% of the share capital, the Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia (35.87%), the National Research Council of Italy (4.62%), and Invitalia Partecipazioni S.p.A. (3.64%). “The appointment of Giovanni Comelli, the member designated by MUR, as President of Elettra Sincrotrone is a choice of continuity, while also signaling enhanced development and renewed momentum for the company,” stated Caterina Petrillo, President of Area Science Park, who added: “With Giovanni Comelli, Elettra will maintain a strong role within the national research system and gain a renewed international perspective. His expertise, together with a solid strategic vision and a strong openness to collaboration, are key elements in strengthening relations with Area Science Park. We look forward to working together on new projects and initiatives capable of enhancing the country’s scientific and technological competitiveness. I am certain that Professor Comelli will make a significant contribution to consolidating Trieste’s role as an international hub for science and innovation. We are grateful to the outgoing President, Professor Franciosi, for leading the company until today”. The new Board of Directors is now composed of Professor Giovanni Comelli (University of Trieste), President; Professor Anna Gregorio (University of Trieste); Dr. Caterina Vozzi (National Research Council of Italy); Professor Giorgio Rossi (University of Milan); and Dr. Paolo Valente (Director of the Rome Section of the National Institute for Nuclear Physics). The new Board of Statutory Auditors, also appointed by the shareholders, is composed of standing auditors Gianpaolo Graberi (Chairman), Francesco Battaglia, Sara Rossi, Gabriella Magurano, and Pietro Coluzzi, with Vittorio Pella and Paola Rodighiero serving as alternate auditors. Both governing bodies ensure significant continuity with the previous composition, while introducing new members with distinguished scientific, academic, and professional expertise

Area Science Park welcomed to its Basovizza Campus an international delegation of 39 students and 3 professors from Leiden University, in the Netherlands. The group is part of the Leidse Biologen Club, the student association bringing together students enrolled in Bachelor’s degree programmes in Biology and Bioinformatics, and the Master’s programmes in Biology. The visit to Trieste is part of an annual study trip that this year also includes the cities of Vienna and Graz. The aim of the club is to allow future biologists to explore new professional opportunities and discover how academic research translates into industrial applications and practical solutions. The students were particularly impressed by the variety of projects developed within the science park, thanks to the presence of multiple companies and laboratories concentrated in one location. Presentations on the activities of Area Science Park, CNR-IOM, and the PRP Platform (Pathogen Readiness Platform), were followed by visits to the Microfabrication, Microsensing and Mechanobiology Laboratory (3M), the Genomics and Epigenomics Laboratory (LAGE), Alifax Research & Development Srl, and the Italian Liver Foundation. “For many students, this was an opportunity to closely observe laboratories and instruments that are usually found only in major international research centres,” said Federico Boscherini, Director of CNR-IOM. “It was a pleasure to welcome students from different scientific backgrounds to the campus and to see their interest in the technologies and infrastructures available here in Basovizza. The campus’s open infrastructures are designed precisely for this purpose: to share expertise, technologies, and advanced research environments with international scientific and educational communities.” The Leidse Biologen Club’s stay in Trieste concluded with excursions to the Grotta Gigante cave and the Val Rosandra nature reserve.