Francesca Tiziana Perez Profeta

Francesca is a biotechnologist, who graduated from the Universidad Nacional de San Martín in Buenos Aires, Argentina. For her thesis, she developed a novel method to isolate mesenchymal stem cells from adipose tissue in wild birds, aiming to apply this method in regenerative therapies for wildlife conservation. This research was presented at the International Embryo Technology Society annual conference in 2024.
After relocating to the United States, Francesca began working in the Endocrinology and Diabetes Department at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, where she utilized human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) differentiation to study endoderm formation into pancreatic beta cells. Her work contributed to monogenic diabetes research and sought to optimize cellular therapies for diabetic patients.
Currently, Francesca is pursuing a PhD in the Animal Biotechnology and Biomedical Sciences program at UMass Amherst, working in the Visconti Lab. The primary research focus is on the transduction pathways involved in sperm capacitation and early embryo development. Looking ahead, Francesca would like to combine her expertise in stem cell biology with reproductive biology to explore the potential of stem cell-derived germ cell progenitors. Her long-term goal is to optimize and explore new approaches for assisted reproductive techniques, both to help individuals and couples have children and to develop new, effective contraceptives.