Emerging bacterial pathogens
Daniela Maria Cirillo
Email: cirillo.daniela@hsr.it
Location: DIBIT2 A4, Floor 2
Deputy Director, Division Immunology, Transplant and Infectious Diseases
Group Leader, Emerging bacterial pathogens
For administrative support, please contact Giovanna Graziano: graziano.giovanna@hsr.it
Daniela M Cirillo MD, PhD, is a physician scientist clinical microbiologist, head of the EBPU since 2002. DMC started her career at the University of Turin working on adhesion molecules and cytoskeleton, after she completed her PhD and her residency in clinical microbiology she moved to Ospedale Molinette in Turin, where she started a program of molecular surveillance of multidrug resistant bacterial pathogens. She spent several years in the US working on bombesin receptor first and on salmonella pathogenesis later, main achievement of the latest postdoc was the demonstration of the relevance of genes encoded by Salmonella pathogenicity island2 for progression of infection (Cirillo,D et al, 1998 Mol Microbiol 796 citations.
In 1998 she started the M.tuberculosis lab for clinical and research work in Torino. Rapidly she became a senior consultant in the field of Mycobacteria for the Italian MoH, WHO, ECDC and international organizations. In 2016, she established the WHO Supranational Reference laboratory in Milan, under her direction this centre has achieved the highest recognition as one of the most active in the network providing training, research collaboration and technical support to more than 15 Countries. DMC’s areas of expertise include clinical microbiology, infection control, molecular mechanisms of drug resistance, operational and basic research on new diagnostics for active TB and Infections, animal models for respiratory pathogens. She participates in the international and national working groups to define guidelines and recommendations on tuberculosis diagnosis and treatment at national, and international level (>10 publications with up to 600 citations). She is member of several editorial bords and reviewer for high level Journals in her field of expertise. She is member of the infection control committee at OSR.
Author of 404 peer reviewed publications, 2 Henry Stuart talks, 7 chapters on peer reviewed scientific books, including the ASM Manual of Clinical Microbiology 13th edition. Total citation 16722 H index (Scopus) 65.
Full professor licencing (ai sensi dell’art. 16 della Legge 240/2010 per il settore concorsuale 06/A3 - Microbiologia e Microbiologia Clinica; SETTORE SCIENTIFICO DISCIPLINARE: MED/07 – Microbiologia e Microbiologia Clinica.)
1992 Philosophiae Doctor in Cell and Development Biology University “La Sapienza” Rome”
1987 Board certification in Microbiology, University of Turin
1983 MD licencing, University of Turin
1983 Doctor in Medicine, University of Turin summa cum laude
2012-present Full time Clinical microbiologist and Scientist, Head of Emerging Bacterial Pathogens Unit at Ospedale San Raffaele, Milan
2023-present Deputy Director, Division of Immunology, Infectious Diseases and Transplantation
2006- present Head of WHO TB SRL Milan, Italy
2016- present Director of the “WHO collaborating Centre for TB laboratory strengthening ITA 98” at Fondazione Centro San Raffaele.
2017-present Ministry of Health National Contact point (alternate) for Tb Surveillance at ECDC
2003-2012 Full time MD, Head of Emerging Bacterial Pathogens Unit at Fondazione San Raffaele del Monte Tabor, Milan.
1999-2003 Full time MD, Ospedale San Giovanni Battista, Turin Italy; Responsible of the “Molecular Diagnostic and Nosocomial Epidemiology and of Respiratory Infection” section.
1997-1998 Senior Post-doctoral Fellow, Dept. of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA (Director S. Falcow, PhD)
1994-1996 Visiting scientist, Dept. of Medicine, Infectious Disease Section of VA Hospital, UCSD, La Jolla, CA (Director J Fierer, MD)
1991-1993 Full time Medical Doctor, Department of Clinical Microbiology in Virology and Molecular Biology, Ospedale San Giovanni Battista and the city of Turin (Molinette).
1986-1989 Postdoc in J. Schlessinger (Meloy/ Rorer laboratories) Rockville, MD and King of Prussia, PA
1979-1986 Medical student and post-doc, istituto di Istologia e Anatomia, Università di Torino
Head of ESCMID collaborating centre in the fields of Tuberculosis and other emerging pathogens diagnosis.
Awardee of the Gardner Middlebrook Career Award in 2017 for outstanding contribution to the field of Mycobacteriology.
Co-Chair of New Diagnostic Working Group of the Stop Tb partnership.
Nominated WHO advisor for the Global TB Program.
President European Society of Mycobacteriology from 2018-2023
Executive secretary of Stop TB Italia since 2006
Deputy President of Amantum NTM patient’s association since 2018
Elected core group member and responsible for scientific activities of Mycobacteria Committee of European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious: Diseases (ESCMID) from 2019
Member of EUCAST and CLSI mycobacteria committees;
Elected representative of the ECDC TB Disease Network Coordination Committee;
Member of FAST-TB Scientific Advisory Board
Chair of the Mycobacteriology committee of the Italian Association of Clinical Microbiologists
Member of the Infection Control Committee at OSR.