ZEHENDER GIANGUGLIELMO

Gianguglielmo Zehender
Ph.D., Public Health

Present Position: Full Professor of General and Applied Hygiene

Affiliation:
Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences “L. Sacco”, Chair of General and Applied Hygiene University of Milan
Via G.B.Grassi, 74
20154 Milan (Italy)
E-MAIL: gianguglielmo.zehender@unimi.it


PRIMARY APPOINTMENTS
2020: Full Professor of General and Applied Hygiene (SC 06/M1, SSD MED/41)-Dept. of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences “L. Sacco”, University of Milan
2015-2020: Associate professor of General and Applied Hygiene- Dept. of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences “L. Sacco”, University of Milan
2002-2015: assistant professor of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, University of Milan
1997-2002: research technician at the Institute of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, University of Milan.

EDUCATION
1995-1997: winner of a research fellowship for the fight against AIDS of the Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome
1993-1995: post doctoral fellowship at the Institute of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine
1992 Doctorate (PhD) in Public Health-University of Milan
1986-91: graduate student (practical training for biologists) and Doctorate course at the Institute of Virology of the University of Milan.
1985: degree in Biology at University of Milan, December 10 1985-Thesis on HIV-1. Final graduation grade: 110 e lode (magna cum laude)

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Principal Investigator at the Laboratory of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, at the Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences “L. Sacco”, University of Milan, since 1992 where he coordinates a research group currently consisting of 1 Researcher, 1 research fellow, 1 PhD student, 5 trainees for the preparation of the degree thesis.
Proposing member of the Coordinated Research Centre (CRC) “EpiSoMI” (Epidemiology and Molecular Surveillance applied to Infectious Diseases) and member of the CRC “CARE” - Centre for Advanced Biomedical Research and Precision Medicine Romeo and Enrica Invernizzi”.
• Member of the Lombard Academy of Public Health
From 2013 to date, member of the Board of the Doctorate in “Public Health Sciences” (before named "Epidemiology, Environment and Public Health ").

TEACHING ACTIVITY
2015 to present – teaching of General and Applied Hygiene and Public Health (for a total of 19 CFUs in 2020) for the Master degrees in Medicine and in “Biology Applied to the Biomedical Research” and for several health related degrees and the Specialisation schools in “Infectious Diseases” and “Hygiene and Preventive Medicine” at the University of Milan.
From 2007/2008 to 2017/2018 he was scientific coordinator and lecturer of the Postgraduate Course in "Bioinformatics applied to the molecular evolution and phylogeny of infectious agents" (total hours 45 / year) at the University of Milan.
2013 November -Theoretical/practical lessons on phylogenetic methods applied to the viral diseases in the Higher Education 2nd level Master on “Bioinformatics Techniques and Molecular Epidemiology Applied to the Infectious Diseases”- Organized by the Italian “Associazione Biologi Ambientalisti Pugliesi”- Bari.
2012-2013: Theoretical/practical lessons on phylogenetic methods applied to the viral diseases in the Higher Education 2nd level Master on “Molecular Virology”- University “La Sapienza”-Rome.
2012- Theoretical/practical seminars at the Workshop in “Molecular Epidemiology and Phylogenesis of Infectious Diseases” at the Medical Research Institute of Alexandria (Egypt).
2008, March- Theoretical/practical seminars at the “Basic course on phylogenetic analysis” at the Institute of Public Health, Sofia (BG).
2002-2015. Human infectious diseases for the students in Medicine at the University of Milan.

RESEARCH INTERESTS AND ACTIVITY
Main field of research: the molecular and genomic epidemiology, surveillance and pathogenesis of infectious diseases agents. Field of interest: application of the advanced molecular evolution and phylogenetic methods (phylodynamics and phylogeography) for reconstructing the origin, the epidemiology and the geographical dispersion of emerging viruses and pathogens at high social impact. More specifically:
Molecular and genomic epidemiology, phylogenesis and molecular evolution of
-Coronaviruses (SARS-CoV-2)
-Hepatitis Viruses (in particular HBV, HCV, HEV)
-Retroviruses (HIV, HTLVs)
-Arboviruses (West Nile Virus, Zika Virus, Chikungunya Virus,Toscana Virus)
- Papilloma Virus
- Filovirus (Ebola and Marburg Virus)
- other acute Respiratory Viruses (Influenza, Bocavirus, HRSV)
- Intra-host evolutionary dynamics of HCV quasispecies in hepatic and extra-hepatic diseases, in single infected and HIV-1 coinfected patients.
- Author of 135 articles in International indexed Journals for a total 1897 citations and an h-index of 23 (Scopus-December 2020).

AWARDS/RECOGNITIONS
2020-Awarded a knighthood of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic
2013- Fellowship Program-Gilead
2005- Award “Angelo Monteverde” for the best paper on cryoglobulinemia of the “Associazione per la lotta alle crioglobuliemie/Gruppo Italiano Studio Crioglobulinemie” (ALCRI/GISC).

REVIEWER ACTIVITY (last 5 years)
Dr. Zehender was invited peer-reviewer for the following Scientific Journals: Plos One, Plos Neglected Diseases, Journal of Medical Virology, Infection Genetics and Evolution, BMC Infectious Diseases, Journal of Clinical Microbiology, Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Journal of Clinical Pathology, Advances in Hematology, Clinical Microbiology and Infection, BMC Microbiology, BMC Public Health.

GRANT FUNDED
2020- Extraordinary project on COVID-19 "Molecular mapping of the SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Italy"-University of Milan (Principal Investigator)
2012-2018 Project “Nanomax Flag project”- Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR) and National Research Council (CNR)- Project Unit Coordinator
2013- Gilead Fellowship Program. “Phylodynamics of the HIV/HBV coinfection: space-temporal reconstruction of the transmission networks”
2011- Project “Use of phylogenetic methods for the study of the molecular epidemiology and evolution of the swine respiratory viruses”- Italian Ministry of Health- Project Unit Coordinator
2011- Project: “Molecular basis of severe influenzavirus A respiratosy syndromes (pandemic and seasonal): study of viral evolution and identification of prognostic genetic markers- Fondazione Cariplo- Coordinator: Fausto Baldanti-Participant
2010-Project: "Reconstruction Of Epidemiological Links And Transmission Events By Phylogenesis In The Italian Cohort Naive For Antiretrovirals" –Italian Ministry of Health- Coord: Claudia Balotta- Unit Participant
2010- Project -"Large-Scale Phylodynamics of HIV-1 in Italy”- Italian Ministry of Health- Coordinator: Andrea De Luca- Unit Participant
1999-2003- National research program on AIDS” Surveillance of the HTLV-1 and HTLV-2 coinfections and of the correlated pathologies in HIV-1 positive patients”-Italian Ministry of Health-Principal Investigator

SEMINAR TALKS/INVITED LECTURES (last 5 years)
2020-Local distance-based formation on COVID-19 “Focus on Coronavirus COVID-19 Pandemic Emergency”. Scientific coordinators De Rosa F., Di Perri G. Milan, 9 May-31 July 2020.
SIMIT, XVIII National Congress, GISSEMI study group, "Smallpox in the XX century: phylogeny and phylogeography", Palermo, 24 November 2019.
• Zooprophylactic and Zootechnical Initiatives Foundation, Communicable Infectious Diseases between Animals and Humans, "West Nile Virus: an emerging infection in Italy and Europe", Brescia, 17 May 2019.
• University of Milan, International Conference “Infectious Disease Days Luigi Sacco"-“The 2016-2018 vaccination plan and the state of vaccinations in Italy” Milan, 25 May 2017.
• Lombardy Region-University of Milan-Sacco Hospital. Workshop Animal infections, human infections: livestock and zoonoses, “Hepatitis E”. Milan, Auditorium G. Testori, 26/09/2016
• University of Milan, International Conference “Infectious Disease Days Luigi Sacco", Phylogeny and phylogeography of HPV ", Milan, 20 May 2016.
• National Consensus Conference: Biological and non-biological infections and DMARDs (disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs), "Hepatitis A and hepatitis E in RA and SpA: epidemiology, clinic and recommendations on prophylaxis in relation to therapy Biological and non-biological DMARDs" . Milan, 21/01/2015.
2014, September 10- 19th International Bioinformatics Workshop on Virus Evolution and Molecular Epidemiology. “Phylodynamics and phylogeography of HBV subgenotypes”; Rome.