Valeria Chiono

Full Professor
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (DIMEAS)

  • Member Comitato Etico per la Ricerca
  • Member of Interdepartmental Center PolitoBIOMed Lab - Biomedical Engineering Lab

Profile

Research interests

3D BIOPRINTING
ADVANCED DRUG DELIVERY
ANTIMICROBIAL MATERIALS
BIOMIMETIC FUNCTIONALIZATION
CARDIAC TISSUE ENGINEERING
IN VITRO MODELS
nanomedicine
NON-VIRAL GENE THERAPY
SKIN TISSUE ENGINEERING
TISSUE ENGINEERING

Biography

Valeria Chiono has a Master Degree cum laude in Chemical Engineering and a PhD in Chemical and Materials Engineering from the University of Pisa, Italy. She is currently Full Professor at the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering of Politecnico di Torino, Italy. Her research is aimed at the design of innovative bioengineering approaches to solve key problems in regenerative medicine and nanomedicine, and includes the development of bioactive materials and interfaces, tissue engineering, materials characterization, in vitro tissue models, drug delivery and non-viral gene therapy. One main research topic is cardiac tissue engineering. She has been the coordinator of several research projects, including STARIGEN FIRB2010 project, financed by the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research, on the preparation of biomimetic scaffolds for cardiac regeneration. In 2017 she has been granted the ERC Consolidator project BIORECAR (contract number: 772168; http://www.biorecar.polito.it/) on advanced strategies for cardiac regeneration by direct reprogramming of fibroblasts into cardiomyocytes by an injectable hydrogel releasing miRNA-loaded nanoparticles. In BIORECAR in vitro models of fibrotic human cardiac tissue are also developed for preclinical investigation. Furthermore, she manages BIORECAR Cell Laboratory at Politecnico di Torino. She is the main lecturer of the following courses at the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering at Politecnico di Torino: “Engineering for regenerative medicine”, “Cell and tissue engineering” and “Laboratory of Tissues and Physiological Processes' Models”. In 2021, she has been appointed Vice-Director of Centro 3R. She is in the editorial board of journals such as Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology and Biomedical Materials. She is author of 122 scientific publications (H-index/citations: 31/4617 Scopus; 36/6253 Google Scholar) and 5 patents in the field of biomaterials, tissue engineering and nanomedicine.

Curriculum

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Research topics

  • Preparation of systems for drug release by green technologies, making use of polymers prepared by bacterial fermentation on by-products of the food industry, or derived from waste products from agricolture, and avoiding or minimizing the use of organic solvents.
  • Direct cell reprogramming applied to cardiac regeneration: preparation of nanoparticles for oligonucleotide release and injectable hydrogels for an in situ therapy of infarcted cardiac tissue.
  • Non-viral gene therapy: lipid and/or polymer nanoparticles for the release of oligonucleotide agents (e.g., siRNAs and miRNAs)
  • Drug releasing hydrogels: preparation of hydrogels based on synthetic and/or natural polymers encapsulating drugs for a controlled and sustained release.
  • In vitro tissue models: blood brain barrier and blood vessels on a chip; engineered cardiac fibrotic tissue; healthy and pathological (mimicking chronic wounds) skin tissue
  • Antimicrobial coatings based on bacterial biosurfactants or biomimetic strategies
  • Cardiac tissue engineering: design of biomimetic scaffolds for a stem cells-based therapy in cardiac regeneration
  • Design of biomimetic materials by the preparation of bioartificial blends or surface functionalization of synthetic polymer scaffolds with bioactive molecules.
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Skills

ERC sectors

LS7_5 - Applied gene and cell therapies, regenerative medicine
PE8_13 - Industrial bioengineering
PE8_13 - Industrial bioengineering
PE8_8 - Materials engineering (biomaterials, metals, ceramics, polymers, composites, etc.)
PE8_8 - Materials engineering (metals, ceramics, polymers, composites, etc.)

SDG

Goal 3: Good health and well-being
Goal 12: Responsible consumption and production

Awards and Honors

  • BioPmed Award 2014 - Gold conferred by BioPmed (2014)
  • Back Cover in Advanced Healthcare Materials conferred by Advanced Healthcare Materials - Wiley (2020)

Fellowships

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Editorial boards

  • MICRO (2021-), Editorial board member
  • FRONTIERS IN BIOMATERIALS SCIENCE (2021-), Other editorial activities
  • FRONTIERS IN PHARMACOLOGY (2021-), Other editorial activities
  • BIOMEDICAL MATERIALS (2020-), Editorial board member
  • FRONTIERS IN CARDIOVASCULAR MEDICINE (2020-), Other editorial activities
  • FRONTIERS IN BIOENGINEERING AND BIOTECHNOLOGY (2018-), Associate Editor of magazine or editorial series
  • 4 OPEN (2018-), Editorial board member
  • BIOMEDICAL SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING (2016-), Director
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Conferences

  • III Convegno Annuale "L'era delle 3R: modelli in silico, in vitro e in vivo per promuovere la ricerca traslazionale" (30/9/2021-1/10/2021), Chairman of the organizing committee
  • XL Scuola Annuale di Bioingegneria 2021 “Biofabrication: an integrated bioengineering approach for the automated fabrication of biological structures for clinical and research applications” (13/9/2021-16/9/2021), Participation to the organizing committee
  • CANCERTO - "Nanoscience in Cancer Immunotherapy" (9/3/2021-11/3/2021), Participation to the organizing committee
  • Workshop “Biology and bioengineering tools in the treatment of H2020 age-related diseases”, Chairman of the organizing committee
  • Workshop "Engineered Biomaterials and Biomedical Devices in the Regenerative Medicine of the Nervous System" (19/11/2015-20/11/2015), Chairman of the organizing committee
  • CONGRESSO SOCIETÀ ITALIANA BIOMATERIALI 2013 (3/6/2013-5/6/2013), Participation to the organizing committee
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Other titles

  • Membro della Giunta DIMEAS 2019-2023 (2019-)
  • Referente di Ateneo per l'Azione del PNRR: Centro Nazionale 3 "Sviluppo di terapia genica e farmaci con tecnologia a RNA" (2021-)
  • Valutazione carriere per studenti che accedono alla Laurea Magistrale in Ingegneria Biomedica - Politecnico di Torino (2021-)
  • Commissario per l'Abilitazione Scientifica Nazionale (ASN) - Settore Concorsuale 09/G2 - Bioingegneria (2021-)
  • Tutor accademico di studenti Erasmus Incoming - Facoltà di Ingegneria Biomedica, Politecnico di Torino (2016-2021)

Research networks

Roles as evaluator or expert

  • First Call of the ADMIRE Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action COFUND in Advanced Materials Research.. 2021
    TRINITY COLLEGE DUBLIN
  • REMOTE REVIEW ERC GRANTS. 2021
    ERC - EUROPEAN RESEARCH COUNCIL - EXECUTIVE AGENCY
  • REMOTE REVIEW ERC GRANTS. 2020
    ERC - EUROPEAN RESEARCH COUNCIL - EXECUTIVE AGENCY

Non-commercial collaboration agreements

Teaching

PhD Boards

  • BIOINGEGNERIA E SCIENZE MEDICO-CHIRURGICHE, 2021/2022 (38. ciclo)
    Politecnico di TORINO
  • BIOINGEGNERIA E SCIENZE MEDICO-CHIRURGICHE, 2020/2021 (37. ciclo)
    Politecnico di TORINO
  • BIOINGEGNERIA E SCIENZE MEDICO-CHIRURGICHE, 2019/2020 (36. ciclo)
    Politecnico di TORINO
  • BIOINGEGNERIA E SCIENZE MEDICO-CHIRURGICHE, 2018/2019 (35. ciclo)
    Università degli Studi di TORINO
  • BIOINGEGNERIA E SCIENZE MEDICO-CHIRURGICHE, 2017/2018 (34. ciclo)
    Università degli Studi di TORINO
  • BIOINGEGNERIA E SCIENZE MEDICO-CHIRURGICHE, 2016/2017 (33. ciclo)
    Università degli Studi di TORINO
  • BIOINGEGNERIA E SCIENZE MEDICO-CHIRURGICHE, 2015/2016 (32. ciclo)
    Politecnico di TORINO
  • BIOINGEGNERIA E SCIENZE MEDICO-CHIRURGICHE, 2014/2015 (31. ciclo)
    Politecnico di TORINO
  • BIOINGEGNERIA E SCIENZE MEDICO-CHIRURGICHE, 2013/2014 (30. ciclo)
    Politecnico di TORINO
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Courses of Study Boards

Teachings

PhD

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Master of Science

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Bachelor of Science

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Research

Research groups

Research projects

Projects funded by competitive calls

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Projects funded by commercial contracts

Supervised PhD students

  • Giovanni Paolo Stola. Programme in Bioingegneria E Scienze Medico-chirurgiche (cycle 38, 2022-in progress)
  • Daniele Testore. Programme in Bioingegneria E Scienze Medico-chirurgiche (cycle 37, 2021-in progress)
  • Francesca Tivano. Programme in Bioingegneria E Scienze Medico-chirurgiche (cycle 37, 2022-in progress)
  • Letizia Nicoletti. Programme in Bioingegneria E Scienze Medico-chirurgiche (cycle 36, 2020-in progress)
  • Gerardina Ruocco. Programme in Bioingegneria E Scienze Medico-chirurgiche (cycle 36, 2020-in progress)
  • Mattia Spedicati. Programme in Bioingegneria E Scienze Medico-chirurgiche (cycle 36, 2020-in progress)
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Other activities and projects related to research

COORDINATION OF RESEARCH PROJECTS

1. PROJECT ERC-CoG 2017: BIORECAR (contract number: 772168) “Direct cell reprogramming therapy in myocardial regeneration through an engineered multifunctional platform integrating biochemical instructive cues” (2018-2023). www.biorecar.polito.it
2. Project BIOMODE “In Vitro Experimental Models for Biomaterials-Mediated Drug Delivery to the Central Nervous System” - Compagnia di San Paolo (2017-2021). In collaboration with Prof. R.D. Kamm, Massachussets – MIT.
3. Project “Proof of concepts” Compagnia di San Paolo: “Method for the preparation of cellularised constructs based on thermosensitive hydrogels” (2017).
4. Project PAD-INJ “Smart Injectable Drug-Delivery systems for Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s Disease Treatment”- Compagnia di San Paolo (2014-2016). In collaboration with Prof. M.G. Spillantini, University of Cambridge (UK).
5. Project FIRB 2010: STARIGEN “Bioartificial materials and biomimetic scaffolds for a stem cells-based therapy for myocardial regeneration” (2012-2015). Overall budget: €1.062.600 (financed grant: € 835.620).
6. Project MITOR - Compagnia di San Paolo: NANOCAB “In Vitro Modelling of Nanoparticle-Mediated Drug Delivery to the Central Nervous System by a Microfluidic Platform Mimicking the Biological Barriers” (2016-2017).
7. Project of Finalized Sanitary Research – 2008 bis, PIEDMONT REGION: “Nano-structured biomimetic coatings for regenerative medicine” (2008-2009)
8. Project of Finalized Sanitary Research – 2009, PIEDMONT REGION: “Multifunctional nano-coatings for medical devices with improved anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties” (2009-2011).

PARTICIPATION TO RESEARCH PROJECTS

1. PROJECT CRT Visco3DCell (2021-2023). Budget: € 33.000. Role: Collaborator.
2. 2020-NMBP-TR-IND-2018 - Project EVPRO (2019-2022); € 500.000. Role: Task Leader. http://www.evpro-implant.eu/
3. H2020-MSCA ITN-2014 - Project HyMedPoly (2015-2018). Role: WP Leader. https://hymedpoly.eu/
4. BANDO ATENEO-CSP 2014 PROJECT -BIOSURF (2015-2017). Role: Unit Leader.

Publications

PoliTO co-authors

Last years publications

Publications by type

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Society and Enterprise

Patents and other intellectual properties

  • Metodo per la preparazione di nanoparticelle polimeriche ibride per il rilascio di farmaci oligonucleotidici nella terapie farmacologiche a scopo rigenerativo, curativo e preventivo.. national Patent - Responsabile Scientifico
    Departmental agreements
  • Metodo per la preparazione di costrutti cellularizzati a base di idrogeli termosensibili tramite tecnica di protitipazione rapida. national and international Patent - Responsabile Scientifico
    Departmental agreements
  • Cementi polimerici biomimetici e biodegradabili per la riparazione di lesioni osteoporotiche vertebrali. national and international Patent - Responsabile Scientifico
    Departmental agreements
  • Rivestimento antiaderenziale per dispositivi impiantabili e metodo di fabbricazione. national and international Patent - Responsabile Scientifico
    Departmental agreements