Valentina Fossati, PhD

Dr. Fossati leads NYSCF’s multiple sclerosis (MS) program and is a NYSCF–Druckenmiller Postdoctoral Fellow Alumna. She joined NYSCF as a NYSCF-Helmsley investigator in 2011, where she became an expert in stem cell models of the brain and neurodegenerative disease.

Dr. Fossati obtained her PhD in stem cell biology from the University of Bologna, working on hematopoietic stem cells and immune system development. During her postdoctoral work at Mount Sinai School of Medicine she worked on embryonic stem cells differentiation to thymic epithelial cells. After being diagnosed with MS in 2009, Dr. Fossati shifted her research to better understanding this disease.

Bringing stem cell expertise to MS research, she has pioneered methods to convert patient stem cells into all major brain cell types, including astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, and microglia, which provide vital support to neurons and are implicated in neurodegeneration. By building living models of the brain in a dish, Dr. Fossati is uncovering the role of these cells in diseases like MS and Alzheimer’s, with the ultimate aim of enabling drug discovery and cell replacement therapies. Dr. Fossati also leads NYSCF’s efforts to develop miniature 3D versions of the brain called “organoids” from human stem cells, which recapitulate the brain’s environment and have become very useful for studying brain development and disease.

• PubMed Profile

• Multiple Sclerosis

• Human Stem Cell Models Reveal the Brain’s Hidden Role in Multiple Sclerosis
• Human Stem Cell Models Point to Glia as Key Players in Multiple Sclerosis
• How the ‘Stars of the Brain’ Could Protect Us From Neurodegeneration
• For Brain Disease Research, Patients Lead the Way
• Killer Astrocytes, Tackling Neurodegeneration, and Sending Cells to Space: Valentina Fossati Reflects on Her Career
• High School Students Join NYSCF for a Week of Immersive Stem Cell Education
• Translating Discoveries into Medicine, Advancing Equity in Science, and New Cancer Therapies: Watch Highlights of the 2021 NYSCF Conference
• The Stem Cell Science You Won’t Want to Miss at The NYSCF Conference
• When Astrocytes Attack: Stem Cell Model Shows Possible Mechanism Behind Neurodegeneration
• NYSCF Collaboration Sends Multiple Sclerosis and Parkinson’s Disease Brain Cells to Space
• First-in-kind Human 3-dimensional Models of Parkinson’s Disease and Progressive Multiple Sclerosis Launching to the International Space Station
• NYSCF Collaboration Finds Possible Mechanism Behind Tired Brain Cells in Progressive MS
• Dr. Valentina Fossati Hunts for the Biomarkers Behind MS
• Researchers Uncover Clue to Brain Abnormalities in Schizophrenia
• NYSCF Method Advances Understanding of Alexander Disease
• Dr. Paul Tesar Launches New Company Aimed at Treating Neurological Disease
• Scientists Develop New Protocol for Generating Brain Organoids
• NYSCF Collaboration Adds Missing Functionality to Brain Organoids
• NYSCF Innovators Derive Microglia From Stem Cells
• Stem Cells Enable Exploration of Rare Neurological Disease
• Five Women Unite to Crack the Code of Multiple Sclerosis
• NYSCF Research Institute Teams Up With National Stem Cell Foundation to Advance Neurodegeneration Research
• NYSCF Highlights Stem Cell Technology for Multiple Sclerosis Research in Paris
• NYSCF Team Uses The Power of Stem Cells To Understand Brain Cell Development
• Spotlighting International Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Month
• NYSCF Scientists Accelerate Multiple Sclerosis Research With New Protocol
• NYSCF Scientists One Step Closer to Cell Replacement Therapies for MS
• NYSCF Multiple Sclerosis Research Featured in Neurology Today