Good afternoon, readers! Pierluca here, writing to you as one of the newest members of this incredible team. For those who haven’t met me yet, I’m a PhD student joining the RCSI family for the next three years.
My story starts in Brindisi, a charming harbor town in southeastern Italy. From there, my academic journey took me to the Netherlands. During my two research projects, I explored how high-fat diets impact liver metabolism and investigated ways to prevent metabolic reprogramming and cell death.
Now, I’m bringing that curiosity to RCSI, where my focus is shifting to something even more complex: cancer metastasis. In the lab, I’ll research how neuroblastoma invades the brain to form metastases. Using 3D bioprinting and scaffold models, I’ll grow Neuroblastoma Kelly and Kelly-cis cells to observe how they infiltrate brain-like structures and hijack the immune system.
Science is intense, so balance is key! When I’m not in the lab, you’ll find me Hiking when the sun is shining or Playing cards in a cozy pub when the rain pours. Cooking with friends is a great way to spend some relaxing time at home and when I am alone, I enjoy a good book (currently reading The Master and Margarita, highly recommend!).
Stay tuned for more about me and my research!
Written by Pierluca Cancellieri, Mac4Me PhD student