CAZZANIGA GIOVANNI

Role
Associate professor  
Academic disciplines
Medical Genetics (MEDS-01/A)
Scientific-Disciplinary Group:
MEDICAL GENETICS (06/MEDS-01)
Email
[email protected]

Biography

EDUCATION

2021 - Associate Professor, Medical Genetics, School of Medicine and Surgery, Univ. Milan Bicocca.

2018 - Assistant Professor (Ricercatore a Tempo Determinato di tipo B, RTDB), Medical Genetics, School of Medicine and Surgery, Univ. Milan Bicocca.

2014 - Qualification (National Scientific Habilitation, ASN) for Associate Professorship to the following sections: 05/F1 Applied Biology BIO/13 and 06/A1 Medical Genetics MED/03, 06/A2 General and Clinical Pathology (deadline 07/01/2023).

2004 - Specialist in Medical Genetics. Faculty of Medicine, University of Milan, Italy. 70/70 cum laude.

1992 - Specialist in Pharmaceutical Research at the “M.Negri” Pharmacology Research Institute of Milan, Italy.

1990 - Biological Science degree at the University of Milan, Italy. 110/110 cum laude.

PROFESSIONAL POSITION

05/2023 - now: Acting Director (ff), Medical Genetics, Foundation IRCCS San Gerardo dei Tintori, Monza, Italy

03/2023 - now:  Deputy Director, Ph.D. Program in Translational and Molecular Medicine (Dimet), University of Milan Bicocca.

12/2021 - now:  Associate Professor, Medical Genetics, School of Medicine and Surgery, Univ. Milan Bicocca.

2006 - now:  Head, “Molecular genetics of leukemia” Unit, Centro Tettamanti, Fondazione Tettamanti, Monza, Italy. 

2018-2021:  Assistant Professor (Ricercatore a Tempo Determinato di tipo B, RTDB), Medical Genetics, School of Medicine and Surgery, Univ. Milan Bicocca.

2009 - 04/2023:  Director, Laboratory of Hemato-Oncology Diagnostics “M. Tettamanti”, Fondazione MBBM, Monza.

1995/1997:  Research fellow at the “M.Tettamanti” Research Center, Pediatric Clinic, University of Milan-Bicocca, Ospedale San Gerardo, Monza, Italy.

1990/1994:  Research fellow at the Laboratory of Enzymology - Molecular Biology Unit - "M.Negri" Pharmacology Research Institute, Milan, Italy.

Research

MAJOR RESEARCH INTERESTS

  • Genetic predisposition to childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL)
  • Prenatal origin of ALL
  • Molecular characterization of childhood ALL
  • Functional analysis of genetic aberrations in leukemic patients (PAX5 lesions, Ph-like ALL, Down Syndrome ALL, MLL-rearrangements) and in vitro/in vivo drug targeting
  • Minimal residual disease monitoring in childhood ALL, by analysis of T-cell Receptor and Immunoglobulin genes’ rearrangements.

Publications

  • Rigotti, L., Rebellato, S., Lettieri, A., Castiglioni, S., Mariani, M., Totaro, S., et al. (2025). Cohesins: Crossroad Between Cornelia de Lange Spectrum and Cancer Predisposition. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF MEDICAL GENETICS. PART A [10.1002/ajmg.a.64076]. Detail

  • Stoltze, U., Junk, S., Byrjalsen, A., Cave, H., Cazzaniga, G., Elitzur, S., et al. (2025). Overt and covert genetic causes of pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia: ACUTE LYMPHOBLASTIC LEUKEMIA. LEUKEMIA [10.1038/s41375-025-02535-4]. Detail

  • Lussana, F., Magnani, C., Galimberti, S., Gritti, G., Gaipa, G., Belotti, D., et al. (2025). Donor-derived CARCIK-CD19 cells engineered with Sleeping Beauty transposon in acute lymphoblastic leukemia relapsed after allogeneic transplantation. BLOOD CANCER JOURNAL, 15(1) [10.1038/s41408-025-01260-6]. Detail

  • Saettini, F., Guerra, F., Mauri, M., Salter, C., Adam, M., Adams, D., et al. (2025). Biallelic PI4KA Mutations Disrupt B-Cell Metabolism and Cause B-Cell Lymphopenia and Hypogammaglobulinemia. JOURNAL OF CLINICAL IMMUNOLOGY, 45(1) [10.1007/s10875-024-01793-8]. Detail

  • Caye-Eude, A., Fazio, G., Pastorczak, A., Boer, J., Steinemann, D., Ganguli, D., et al. (2025). PAX5::AUTS2 childhood B-ALL: a relapse-prone genetic subtype with frequent central nervous system involvement and a poor outcome: ACUTE LYMPHOBLASTIC LEUKEMIA. LEUKEMIA, 39(2), 482-486 [10.1038/s41375-024-02502-5]. Detail

Full list

Research projects

PNRR per la Missione 4, componente 2 Investimento 1.1- Avviso 104/2022 | Precision drug targeting of high risk relapsing childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia
Year: 2022
Call: Bando PRIN 2022
Grantors: MINISTERO DELL'UNIVERSITA' E DELLA RICERCA (MUR)

Awards

Scientific fellowships

  • Componente del Comitato Scientifico - Comitato REgionale per i Servizi di MEdicina di Laboratorio (CRESMEL) - Regione Lombardia, 2023
  • Componente dell'Advisory Board - project “Responsible Initiative on Neonatal Genome Sequencing” (RINGS), 2022
  • Componente del Comitato Scientifico - Comitato Tecnico Scientifico di Associazione Italiana per la Ricerca sul Cancro (AIRC), 2016
  • Componente del Consiglio/Comitato Direttivo - Euroclonality-NGS (WG of ESHLO, an official Specialized Working Group of the European Hematology Association), 2015
  • Socio fondatore - European Group for Minimal Residual Disease (EuroMRD), 2001

Editorial boards

  • Associate Editor di rivista o collana editoriale - FRONTIERS IN PEDIATRICS, 2022

Congresses/Conferences

  • Program committee - ESLHO Symposium(Paesi Bassi), 2025
  • Program committee - AIEOP...in Lab(Italia), 2025
  • Program committee - AIEOP...in Lab(Italia), 2025
  • Program committee - ESHLO Symposium(Portogallo), 2024
  • Program committee - ESHLO Symposium(Spagna), 2023
  • Program committee - AIEOP...in Lab(Italia), 2023
  • Program committee - ESHLO Symposium(Polonia), 2022
  • Program committee - ESHLO Symposium(Paesi Bassi), 2021
  • Program committee - ESHLO Symposium, 2020
  • Program committee - ESHLO Symposium(Belgio), 2019
  • Program committee - ESHLO Symposium(Germania), 2018
  • Program committee - AIEOP...in Lab(Italia), 2018
  • Program committee - ESHLO Symposium(Paesi Bassi), 2017
  • Program committee - ESHLO Symposium(Repubblica Ceca), 2016
  • Program committee - ESHLO Symposium(Svizzera), 2015
  • Program committee - AIEOP...in Lab(Italia), 2015
  • Program committee - ESHLO Symposium(Spagna), 2014
  • Program committee - ESHLO Symposium(Paesi Bassi), 2013
  • Program committee - AIEOP...in Lab(Italia), 2009