Alessandro Grattoni, United States

Grattoni Alessandro, Ph.D.

Frank J. and Jean Raymond Centennial Chair, Chairman and Professor, Department of Nanomedicine, Houston Methodist Hospital, Houston, Texas, USA. Professor in the Departments of Surgery and Radiation Oncology at Houston Methodist. Adjunct Professor, Texas A&M School of Medicine. Dr. Grattoni’s research activities are dedicated to the development and clinical translation of implantable technology platforms for controlled long-acting drug delivery and cell transplantation. Active areas of research include Type 1 Diabetes, HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), and intratumoral cancer immunoradiotherapy. Further area of research is 3D-manufactured devices for the transplantation of endocrine cells or for the selective recruitment and in vivo engineering of immune cells. The primary focus is the creation of an immune modulated microenvironment supporting cell delivery, and reprogramming while maintaining long-term viability and function of cells. Areas of applications include type 1 diabetes and hypogonadism among others. Additionally, Dr. Grattoni’s laboratory is actively studying electrokinetics in nanofluidics for modulating molecular transport to achieve a remotely controlled drug delivery platform for telemedicine. With the support for the ISS National Lab, Dr. Grattoni has established a Center for Space Nanomedicine at the Houston Methodist Research Institute, fully focused on leveraging the microgravity laboratory of the International Space Station, for the investigation of nanomedicine approaches for the benefit of patients on-Earth as well as for Space exploration.

Dr. Grattoni has received support as the Principal Investigator from DoD, NASA, NIH NIAID, NIDDK, NIGMS, NCI, ISS National Laboratory, BT1D (formerly JDRF), USAID, Gates Foundation, Gilead Sciences, Golfers Against Cancer, Vivian L. Smith Foundation, Men of Distinction, Cattlemen for Cancer, Nancy Owens Breast Cancer Foundation, among others. Dr. Grattoni is founder and chief scientific advisor for the spin-off company, Continuity Biosciences which is focused on the clinical translation of the technology platforms developed in his laboratory. Additionally, Dr. Grattoni serves as a Member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Diabetes Research Institute of the University of Miami, FL.