Roberto Pola, MD, PhD
Associate Investigator
Center of Cancer Systems Biology
Adjunct Assistant Professor of Medicine
Tufts University School of Medicine
Mail: roberto.pola [at] tufts.edu
Education and Training:
- 1996 MD, Catholic University School of Medicine, Rome, Italy
- 2001 PhD, Catholic University School of Medicine, Rome, Italy
- 2003 Fellowship in Geriatric Medicine, A. Gemelli University Hospital in Rome, Italy
Academic Positions:
| 1999 – 2001 | Research Fellow, Division of Cardiovascular Research, St. Elizabeth's Medical Center, Boston, MA (Mentor: Dr. Jeffrey M. Isner) |
| 2001 – 2003 | Research and Clinical Fellow, Center of Medicine and Research on Aging, A. Gemelli University Hospital in Rome, Italy |
| 2005 – 2008 | Assistant Professor, Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA |
| 2008 – 2010 | Associate Investigator, Division of Cardiovascular Research, St. Elizabeth's Medical Center, Boston, MA |
| 2004 – current | Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine of the Catholic University School of Medicine, Rome, Italy |
| 2008 – current | Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA |
| 2011 – current | Associate Investigator, Center of Cancer Systems Biology, Boston, MA |
Awards and Honors:
| 2000 | Travel Stipend Award for Young Investigators of the Council on Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology at the 73rd Scientific Sessions of the American Heart Association (AHA), New Orleans, LA, USA |
| 2001 | Young Investigator Award at the 18th Conference of the International Society of Thrombosis and Haemostasis (ISTH), Paris, France |
| 2001 | Melvin L. Marcus Young Investigator Award in Cardiovascular Sciences at the 74th Scientific Sessions of the American Heart Association (AHA), Anaheim, CA, USA |
| 2004 – 2011 | D1 Awards, Catholic University School of Medicine, Rome, Italy |
| 2009 | Charlton Family Foundation Award, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA |
| 2010 | Annual Research Day Award, 1st Prize in the Basic Science Category, St. Elizabeth's Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA |
| 2010 | Annual Research Day Award, 2nd Prize in the Clinical/Translational Science Category, St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA |
| 2012 | Young Investigator Award, Italian Department of Health |
Scientific Activity:
Dr. Pola has published more than 80 papers in peer-reviewed scientific journals, including Nature, Nature Medicine, Nature Genetics, J Clin Invest, Circulation, J Am Coll Cardiol, Diabetes, Molecular Therapy, and ATVB.
He has received grants from the NIH, the Italian Ministry of University and Research (MIUR), the Italian Department of Health, Tufts University, and the Catholic University School of Medicine, Rome, Italy.
He is a member of the Review Board of the Italian Society of Internal Medicine, the Italian Department of University and Scientific Research (MIUR), the Italian Department of Health, the Diabetes-UK Foundation, the British Diabetic Association, and the French Muscular Dystrophy Association (AFM).
Dr. Pola serves as reviewer for the following scientific journals:
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Funding History as Principal Investigator:
| 2008 – 2010 | Grant number: 1R21HL089684 Title: Sonic muscle regeneration Source: NIH-NHLBI | Type of grant: R21 Amount: $ 275,000 |
| 2008 – 2010 | Grant number: RC23758V Title: Angiogenic and vasculogenic effects of combined intramuscular endothelial progenitor cells and Sonic Hedgehog (Shh) gene therapy in peripheral ischemia Source: Fondazione Roma | Type of grant: donation Amount: € 158.600 |
| 2010 | Charlton Family Grant Title: Role of Sonic hedgehog in the hypoxic cerebellum Source: Tufts University School of Medicine | Type of grant: intramural grant Amount: $ 9,000 |
| 2009 – 2013 | Grant number: RBID08MAFS Title: Reactivation of the embryonic Sonic hedgehog signaling pathway for adult skeletal muscle regeneration Source: Italian Department of University and Scientific Research (MIUR) | Type of Grant: FIRB IDEAS Amount: € 1.116.000 |
| 2012 – 2015 | Grant number: GR-2010-20305041 Title: Impaired Angiogenesis: a novel player and potential therapeutic target in Muscular Dystrophy Source: Italian Department of Health | Type of Grant: Young Investigator Award Amount: € 454.800 |
Selected Publications:
- Piccioni A., Gaetani E., Neri V., et al. (2014) Sonic hedgehog therapy in a mouse model of age-associated impairment of skeletal muscle regeneration. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 63(4): 245-252.
- Palladino M., Gatto I., Neri V., et al. (2013) Angiogenic impairment of the vascular endothelium: a novel mechanism and potential therapeutic target in muscular dystrophy. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 33(12): 2867-2876.
- Sturiale C.L., Puca A., Sebastiani P., et al. (2012) Single nucleotide polymorphisms associated with sporadic brain arteriovenous malformations: where do we stand? Brain 136(Pt 2): 665-681.
- Helgadottir A., Gretarsdotir S., Thorleifsson G., et al. (2012) Apolipoprotein(a) genetic sequence variants associated with systemic atherosclerosis and coronary atherosclerotic burden but not with venous thromboembolism. J Am Coll Cardiol 60: 722-729.
- Palladino M., Gatto I., Neri V., et al. (2012) Combined therapy with sonic hedgehog gene transfer and bone marrow-derived endothelial progenitor cells enhances angiogenesis and myogenesis in the ischemic skeletal muscle. J Vasc Res 49: 425-431.
- Palladino M., Gatto I., Neri V., et al. (2011) Pleiotropic beneficial effects of sonic hedgehog gene therapy in an experimental model of peripheral limb ischemia. Mol Ther 19: 658-666.
- Palmer C.N., Kimber C.H., Doney A.S., et al. (2010) Combined effect of inflammatory gene polymorphisms and the risk of ischemic stroke in a prospective cohort of sujects with type 2 diabetes: a Go-DARTS study. Diabetes 59: 2945-2948.
- Gretardsottir S., Baas A.F., Thorleifsson G., et al. (2010) Genome-wide association study identifies a sequence variant within the DAB2IP gene conferring susceptibility to abdominal aortic aneurysm. Nature Genetics 42: 692-697.
- Pola R. (2009) Inflammatory markers for ischaemic stroke. Thromb Haemost 101: 800-801.
- Straface G., Aprahamian T., Flex A., et al. (2009) Sonic hedgehog regulates angiogenesis and myogenesis during post-natal skeletal muscle regeneration. J Cell Mol Med 13: 2424-2435.
- Thorgeirsson T.E., Geller F., Sulem P., et al. (2008) A variant associated with nicotine dependence, lung cancer and peripheral arterial disease. Nature 452: 638-642.
- Biscetti F., Pola R. (2008) Endothelial progenitor cells and angiogenesis join the PPARty. Circulation Res 103: 7-9.
- Biscetti F., Gaetani E., Flex A., et al. (2008) Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor Alpha is crucial for iloprost-induced in vivo angiogenesis and Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor upregulation. J Vasc Res 46: 103-108.
- Biscetti F., Gaetani E., Flex A., et al. (2008) Selective activation of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)a and PPARg induces neoangiogenesis through a vascular endothelial growth factor-dependent mechanism. Diabetes 57: 1394-1404.
- Helgadottir A., Thorleifsson G., Magnusson K.P., et al. (2008) The same sequence variant on 9p21 associates with myocardial infarction, abdominal aortic aneurysm and intracranial aneurysm. Nature Genetics 40: 217-224.
- Flex A., Gaetani E., Angelini F., et al. (2007) Pro-inflammatory genetic profiles in subjects with peripheral arterial occlusive disease and critical limb ischemia. J Intern Med 262: 124-130.
- Danese S., Sans M., de la Motte C., et al. (2006) Angiogenesis as a novel component of inflammatory bowel disease pathogenesis. Gastroenterology 130: 2060-2073.
- Kusano K.F., Pola R., Toshinori M., et al. (2005) Sonic hedgehog myocardial gene therapy: Tissue repair through transient reconstitution of embryonic signaling. Nature Medicine 11: 1197-1204.
- Pola R., Aprahamian T.R., Bosch-Marcé M., et al. (2004) Age-dependent VEGF expression and intraneural vascularization during regeneration of peripheral nerves. Neurobiol Aging 25: 1361-1368.
- Kusano K.F., Allendoerfer K.L., Munger W., et al. (2004) Sonic hedgehog induces arteriogenesis in diabetic vasa nervorum and restores function in diabetic neuropathy. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 24: 2102-2107.
- Flex A., Gaetani E., Papaleo P., et al. (2004) Proinflammatory genetic profiles in subjects with history of ischemic stroke. Stroke 35: 2270-2275.
- Danese S., Scaldaferri F., Papa A., et al. (2004) CD40L-positive platelets induce CD40L expression de novo in endothelial cells: adding a loop to microvascular inflammation. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 24: e162.
- Pola R., Gaetani E., Flex A., et al. (2004) Comparative analysis of the in vivo angiogenic properties of stable prostacyclin analogs: a possible role for peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors. J Mol Cell Cardiol 36: 363-370.
- Pola R., Gaetani E., Flex A., et al. (2003) Peripheral nerve ischemia: apoliprotein-E deficiency results in impaired functional recovery and reduction of associated intraneural angiogenic response. Exp Neurol 184: 264-273.
- Pola R., Ling L.E., Aprahamian T.R., et al. (2003) Postnatal recapitulation of embryonic hedgehog pathway in response to skeletal muscle ischemia. Circulation 108: 479-485.
- Pola R., Flex A., Gaetani E., et al. (2003) Synergistic effect of -174 G/C polymorphism of the IL-6 gene promoter and 469 E/K polymorphism of the ICAM-1 gene in Italian patients with history of ischemic stroke. Stroke 34: 881-885.
- Pola R., Ling L., Silver M., et al. (2001) Sonic hedgehog is an indirect angiogenic agent upregulating two families of angiogenic growth factors. Nature Medicine 7: 706-711.
- Schratzberger P., Walter D.H., Rittig K., et al. (2001) Reversal of experimental diabetic neuropathy by VEGF gene transfer. J Clin Invest 107: 1083-1092.