Cystic Kidney Disorders

Alessandra Boletta

Boletta Alessandra

Email: boletta.alessandra@hsr.it
Location: DIBIT1, Sector A1, Floor 4, Room 14

Group Leader, Cystic Kidney Disorders

Dr. Alessandra Boletta is a basic and translational scientist with over 25 years of research experience in kidney physiology and molecular biology, with a focus on Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD) and other renal ciliopathies. She earned her M.Sc. in Biochemistry from the University of Pavia, completed advanced training in Molecular Biology at the University of Greenwich, and received her Ph.D-equivalent from the Mario Negri Institute in Bergamo (Italy) and San Raffaele Scientific Institute in Milan (Italy). She later trained as a postdoctoral fellow at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (1997-2002). Dr. Boletta served as Director of the Division of Genetics and Cell Biology at IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute (2014–2019). She has made significant contributions to understanding PKD pathogenesis. Her lab was the first to describe metabolic reprogramming as a major feature in ADPKD, work that led the lab to the development of potential therapeutic approaches based on these discoveries. In 2022, she received the prestigious Lillian Jean Kaplan International Prize for Advancement in PKD Research. She has served on advisory and editorial boards, including the PKD Foundation, Scientific Reports, Frontiers in Medicine, and the Journal of Nephrology, and holds two patents. A founding member of the Italian PKD patient association (AIRP), she is also a committed mentor, having launched a research-wide mentorship program at San Raffaele.