Valeria Fumagalli, PhD

Dr. Valeria Fumagalli is an Assistant Professor in General Pathology, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy.

Dr. Fumagalli investigates liver immunology with a specific interest in how infections and tumors remodel immune circuits and shape immune cell responses.

During her PhD in Basic and Applied Immunology and Oncology under the mentorship of Professors Matteo Iannacone and Luca Guidotti, she explored the role of innate lymphoid cells, B cells, and CD8⁺ T cells in the pathogenesis of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. She demonstrated that serum HBsAg clearance has minimal impact on antiviral CD8⁺ T cell responses in HBV and contributed to dissecting the mechanism underlying intrahepatic CD8⁺ T cell dysfunction upon hepatocellular antigen recognition.

She was awarded an AIRC fellowship to study the spatiotemporal dynamics and genomic landscape of intrahepatic CD8⁺ T cells during chronic hepatitis and liver cancer. More recently, Dr. Fumagalli has expanded her research to colorectal cancer liver metastases as part of an ERC Synergy Grant, developing novel immunotherapies that harness innate immune cells through next-generation cell engagers. Her work combines advanced mouse models, immune profiling, and translational approaches to uncover mechanisms of immune dysfunction and identify new therapeutic opportunities.