Pharmacology
Head of Section: Giuseppina Cantarella
The Section of Pharmacology includes faculty members from the following academic disciplines: BIOS-11/A – Pharmacology, MEDS-19/B – Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine, and MEDS-26/C – Rehabilitation Health Professions Sciences.
The faculty members of the Section are involved in a wide range of research activities, mainly in the fields of neuropharmacology, psychopharmacology, ocular pharmacology and clinical pharmacology. More specifically, the main research topics are:
Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases: Neuroinflammation; microglia–neuron crosstalk; astrocyte-derived exosomes and stem cell transplantation as innovative therapeutic approaches; astrocytes and blood–brain barrier functions; LRRK2 mutations and neuroinflammation.
Psychopharmacology: Role of the dopamine D3 receptor in schizophrenia, mood disorders and substance abuse; endogenous cannabinoid system.
Ocular Pharmacology: Drug delivery; degenerative retinal diseases such as diabetic retinopathy, macular degeneration and glaucoma.
Clinical Pharmacology: Multicentre studies on the efficacy and safety of central nervous system (CNS) drugs; appropriateness of medical device prescribing in hospital settings.
The Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine academic discipline is part of the Section because of shared scientific interests related to pharmacological approaches in rehabilitation. Current research activities are increasingly focused on integrated rehabilitation methods for patients with spinal cord injuries and on the assessment of their functional outcomes.
All research activities are funded through competitive national programmes (PRIN, PON, etc.) and University/Department funds. Pharmaceutical companies also make a significant contribution by supporting research in areas of mutual interest through unrestricted grants and consultancy agreements.
Faculty members hold a wide range of teaching appointments in the degree programmes in Medicine and Surgery, Medical Biotechnology, Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Technology, Biology, as well as in several Health Professions degree programmes. They are also involved in the Department’s three PhD programmes, as well as in postgraduate programmes and medical Specialisation Schools.
The Section’s Third Mission activities primarily involve research collaborations with pharmaceutical industries, SMEs and large companies at both national and international level. Collaborations are also active with companies in the agri-food and nutraceutical sectors.
Pharmacologists are involved in the dissemination of scientific knowledge in the biomedical and healthcare fields, promoting the design and development of educational activities consistent with their research and teaching profiles. These include numerous Continuing Medical Education (CME) courses for physicians and other healthcare professionals.
Finally, the Section’s pharmacologists participate, at national and international level, in expert committees, scientific societies and institutional bodies that contribute to the development of protocols, technical standards and regulations, guidelines, position papers and other documents. Their areas of expertise range from regulatory issues concerning medicines to the definition of criteria for appropriate therapeutic use.