Andrea Ballabio

Born in Naples in 1957, Andrea Ballabio earned his degree in Medicine and Surgery from the University of Naples Federico II in 1981, where he also specialized in Pediatrics in 1985. After a long period abroad, first in the United Kingdom and then in the United States, he returned to Italy in 1994 to found, on behalf of the Telethon Foundation, the Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine (TIGEM), which he directed until March 2024.

He is currently a Principal Investigator at TIGEM and also serves as Full Professor of Medical Genetics at the Department of Translational Medical Sciences of the University of Naples Federico II, as well as Visiting Professor at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, USA.

Throughout his career, Andrea Ballabio has focused on studying the mechanisms underlying genetic diseases. Over the years, his research group has identified the genes responsible for numerous genetic disorders and has also contributed to the Human Genome Project. In recent years, his research has focused on lysosomes, the organelles that, within cells, oversee the disposal of cellular waste.

His group discovered a mechanism to activate lysosomes and thereby clear cells of toxic substances such as those that accumulate in neurodegenerative diseases and lysosomal storage disorders. More recently, studies conducted by Ballabio’s group have revealed that this mechanism also plays a fundamental role in several types of cancer.

Andrea Ballabio has served as President of the European Society of Human Genetics and has received numerous national and international awards for research and culture, including the European Research Council (ERC) Advanced Grant. He was the first scientist in Italy to receive the Louis-Jeantet Prize for Medicine in 2016, a prestigious award granted annually to leading researchers in Europe.

In 2021, the Accademia dei Lincei awarded him the “Antonio Feltrinelli” Prize for Biological Sciences and Applications.

He is currently a member of the Advisory Boards of INGM Milan, Human Technopole Milan, and VIMM Padua. He is a co-founder of CASMA Therapeutics and serves as a scientific advisor to Next Generation Diagnostics and Avilar Therapeutics. He has served on numerous international committees for the evaluation of research projects, including those of the European Commission and the Canadian Genome Project. He was also a torchbearer during the 20th Winter Olympic Games held in Turin in 2006.

In 2007, he was appointed Commander of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic by then-President Giorgio Napolitano, and in 2020 he was awarded the rank of Grand Officer of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic.

In 2022, he was elected a member of the Accademia dei Lincei and was awarded an Honorary Degree in Biological Sciences by the University of Camerino.

He has published more than 400 articles in leading international scientific journals and is the inventor of eight international patents.