Bio
Tullia Maraldi graduated and obtained her PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Bologna with a study on reactive oxygen species as second messanegers in the regulation of laukemia progression. In 2005, during the stay in the Molecular Signalling Laboratory directed by Dr. Martin Bootman in The Babraham Institute, Cambridge, UK, she studied the interplay between calcium signalling and ROS-dependent induction of death. Since 2007 she has worked on the biological characteristics of human stem cells isolated from human amniotic fluid (hAFSC) for the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia as Researcher and now as Associate Professor in Histology. Her current research interests are focused on investigating the role of redox balance in stem cell fate. She is particularly interested in the regenerative potential and immunomodulatory properties due to paracrine factors released as soluble secreted molecules and extracellular vesicles. She is also investigating the aging phenomenon occurring during in vitro expansion of hAFSC, focusing on the characterization of individual properties, such as the disposition to premature aging linked to a redox imbalance.

Bio
Valentina Russo graduated in Veterinary Medicine (cum laude), University Federico II Naples. Actually, she is an Associate Professor of Veterinary Anatomy habilitated for Full Professor position at the University of Teramo. Valentina is vice-coordinator of the PhD programme in Cellular and Molecular Biotechnologies. Her research interests are mainly focused on amniotic epithelial stem cells and their application in regenerative medicine and tissue engineering especially for tendon therapy. She is Editor of two books and has edited several chapter books, has published 113 publications of which over 60 full papers published on peer reviewed international scientific journals. Valentina has been part of numerous European and national/regional projects as PI/member, actually she is PI for the University of Teramo of the funded H2020-MSCA-ITN-EJD- 955685 project Perspectives For Future Innovation in Tendon repair (P4 FIT).

Bio
Professor Forsyth, a graduate of Glasgow University at BSc (Hons) and PhD level, joined Keele as a Lecturer in Stem Cell Biology in 2006. This followed on from postdoctoral appointments at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Centre at Dallas, Texas, USA and the Roslin Institute, Edinburgh. He was appointed to Professor of Stem Cell Biology in 2016. His research is focussed on improved understanding of stem cell biology, mechanisms of action in regenerative medicine applications, and the interface of biology with materials science. He has published over 80 manuscripts, has an h-index of 29, and holds a number of patents across the cell culture mileua, materials interface subject. From a research culture leadership position Nick was Director of the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences multidisciplinary and internationally leading Research Institute of Science and Technology in Medicine from 2016 to 2019. Nick was appointed as Dean of Research in 2019 with an overall responsibility for maintaining a supportive research culture across an environment spanning fundamental laboratory research through to patient-facing, secondary care, and beyond to population health and GP-led studies.

Bio
Dr. Sveva Bollini graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Padova in Medical Biotechnology in 2005 and obtained her PhD from the same University in 2009 with a study on the regenerative potential of human amniotic fluid-derived progenitor cells for cardiac repair, under the supervision of Prof. Paolo De Coppi. From 2009 until 2013 she worked on the reactivation of endogenous mechanisms of cardiac regeneration as Post-Doctoral Research Associate first in the Molecular Medicine Unit, at the Institute of Child Health – University College of London and then in the Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics of the University of Oxford, UK in the research team led by Prof. Paul Riley. In 2014 she was presented with the “Rita Levi Montalcini” Young Investigator Award from the ItalianMinistry of Research and Education (MIUR) and invited back to Italy to study the cardio-activeparacrine potential of the human amniotic fluid stem cell secretome to enhance cardiac repair. Currently she is a Group Leader and Associate Professor in Experimental Biology in the Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Genova in Genova, Italy. Her research mainly focuses on the functional characterization of human fetal and perinatal stem cell extracellular vesicles to enhance mechanisms of cardioprotection following injury and to rejuvenate myocardial renewal. Dr. Bollini has been a Council Member of the International Placenta Stem Cell Society (IPLASS) since 2018. In 2019 she became a member of the Cardiovascular Committee of the International Society for Cell & Gene Therapy (ISCT) and a member of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Scientists of Tomorrow Nucleus.