PhD in Cardio Nephro Thoracic Sciences

Academic Year 2021/2022 PON Scholarships Call
Subject area Medical, Pharmaceutical and Veterinary Medical Sciences
Cycle 37
Coordinator Prof. Gaetano Domenico Gargiulo
Language English, Italian
Duration 3 years
Positions 2 positions. More information in the PhD Programme Table.
Application deadline Oct 20, 2021 at 11:59 PM (Expired)
Enrolment period From Nov 05, 2021 to Nov 12, 2021
Doctoral programme start date Jan 01, 2022
Operating centre
Bologna
Main Department
Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences - DIMEC
Associated Departments
Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine - DIMES
Curricula
  1. Cardiology/Cardiac Surgery
  2. Nephrology/Urology
  3. Pulmonary Diseases/Thoracic Surgery
Research topics

Curriculum 1 - Cardiology/Cardiac Surgery

  • Pulmonary Hypertension: Pharmacotherapy of induction
  • New perspectives in the treatment of acute and chronic ischemic heart disease
  • New approaches to percutaneous treatment of aortic and mitral valve disease
  • Personalized therapy, "genetic driven", of cardiomyopathies
  • New techniques of catheter ablation for the treatment of arrhythmias
  • Brain protection in aortic arch surgery
  • Myocardial protection in cardiac surgery
  • Heart transplantation
  • Aortic valve replacement with prosthesis ‘sutereless’
  • ‘Frozen elephant trunk technique’ surgery for extensive diseases of the thoracic aorta
  • Decellularized scaffolds in pediatric cardiac surgery.

 

Curriculum 2 - Nephrology/Urology

  • Imaging in the diagnosis, staging and restaging of prostate cancer evaluation of the role of new radiotracers for PET and identify the presence of lymph node metastases using the histological gold standard diagnostic
  • To determine the role of PET in restaging of patients with recurrent disease and assess the main clinical indicators may be related to a positive imaging
  • To evaluate the multiparametric MR in the local staging of disease prior to surgery and in patients in active surveillance for prostate cancer indolent
  • Laparoscopy in urology oncology
  • Application of laser technology for the treatment of benign prostatic hypertrophy (HoLEP)
  • Retrograde treatment of kidney stones through the use of flexible instruments (RIRS, retrograde intrarenal surgery) and the technique combined antegrade-retrograde (ECIRS endoscopiccombinedintrarenal surgery).

 

Curriculum 3 - Pulmonary Diseases/Thoracic Surgery

  • Technological innovations in the treatment of acute and cronic respiratory failure
  • Physiopathological mechanisms of exacerbation of chronic respiratory disorders
  • Home monitoring for chronic respiratory patients
  • Prevention of the respiratory infections in critically ill patients
  • Surgical therapy of experimental model of pulmonary hypertension
  • Pathogenetic factors of fibrosis in the esophageal gastro-esophageal reflux disease
  • Biomolecular characteristics of pathogenesis of esophageal adenocarcinoma
  • The neuroendocrine tumors of the chest: from neuroepithelial bodies & Co. to disease
  • The role of the genetic and biomolecular markers for a multidsciplinary tailored therapy
  • The minimally-invasive diagnostic and therapeutic approach to lung cancer: between present time and future perspectives
  • Study of pulmonary regeneration after pneumonectomy: experimental models and their applications - Enhancing lung transplantation: ex-vivo lung perfusion another techniques.
Job opportunities and potential areas of employment
- Researcher
- Researcher in clinical SSD
- OU Medical Director in the university clinic
- Medical Director UO hospital
- Research laboratories or public or private institutions
- Research Assistant in public institutions or private.
Admission Board

Name Surname Universitaly Role email
Elena Bonora Università di Bologna Member
Niccolò Daddi Università di Bologna Member
Carlo Ventura Università di Bologna Member
Umberto Galderisi Università della Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli" Substitute
Luca Mastracci Università di Genova Substitute
Kerry Jane Rhoden Università di Bologna Substitute
Learning outcomes
The PhD programme is dedicated to Cardiology/Cardiac Surgery, Nephrology/Urology, Pulmonology/Thoracic surgery/ Esophageal surgery. It is articulated in basic and clinical research in the fields of stem cells, genetics, thoracic oncology , immunology, in any area of possible development of research pertinent to the curricula in which the PhD programme is organised.
The educational objectives are:
- the introduction to the methodology of scientific research
- the acquisition of bibliographic research methodologies, implementation of the data base, statistical processing data
- the acquisition of special laboratory techniques in the context of defined research projects
- the acquisition of modern computer aids for research and communication
- knowledge of the basic rules a) of medical ethics in clinical research and b) the ethics of laboratory experimentation - knowledge of methods of structure of research protocols.
Activities to be carried out by Doctoral candidates
PhD Candidates will conduct the research activity understood as "learning laboratory". Common to all the curricula are: bibliographical research, understanding and review of the literature, preparation of study protocols, statistical analysis of the data collected for the preparation of abstracts, communications, articles, preferably to be submitted to conventions and international journals whose access is through "peer review". Candidates will be primarily responsible for the "peer review" process and for the presentation and discussion of the data at conferences. Candidates who have chosen to address the basic research will attend laboratory activities, the others will attend laboratory and clinical activities or clinical one only. The experimental samples will be, in the various options, experiments and patients.
Research training activities compliant with the Doctoral programme's learning outcomes
The training activities consist in research laboratory and/or clinical research, coordinated by the Supervisor, and educational activities, including four areas of training: at the University level, common among the PhD programmes of the medical area, common among the PhD programme and specific.
- The University organises the basic training on the management of research, knowledge of research systems and financing systems, exploiting the results of research and intellectual property, business culture. PhD candidates with specific interests can also follow advanced courses on these topics.
- The Doctoral medical area organises courses of scientific English (24 hours, in collaboration with the University Language Centre) and safety courses in biomedical environment (12 hours, in collaboration with the Area People and Organisation of the University and with Referrals to the Security Departments of reference).
- The PhD programme organises seminars hold by members of the Academic Board. The main topics are those described in reference to the three curricula which make up the PhD programme.
- The Supervisor directs the PhD candidate to specific training events (conferences, workshops, internships, revisions of case studies, etc.) and is responsible for advanced computer training according to the research project.
Internationalization features
The PhD programme has established a cooperative relationship with universities and scientific training centres and multinational companies with intensive research and development in the biomedical field, in Europe and North America.

Curriculum 1: Cardiology-Cardiac Surgery
- University Hospital St. Luc, Universitè Catholique de Louvain Brüssel Belgium
- Utrecht University Hospital, Heart Lung Institute Utrecht Netherlands.

Curriculum 2: Nefrology-Urology
- Nephrology Service, Hospital Universitari Bellvitge, University of Barcelona
- Fresenius Medical Care International, Bad Homburg, Germany
- Novartis

Curriculum3: Pneumology-Thoracic surgery
- University of Toronto, Division of Thoracic Surgery Toronto General Hospital, Canada
- Columbia University Medical Centre, NY
- Presbyterian Hospital, NY, USA
- Silicon Biosystems, University Hospital Zurich, Dept. of Thoracic surgery, Switzerland
- Vienna Medical University, Dept. of Thoracic surgery, Austria
- Universitair Ziekenhuis Leuven, Dept of Thoracic Surgery Belgium
- King’s College London, UK
- Tuffs University, Boston, MA, USA
- University Ghent, Gent, Belgium
- European Health Center
- Otwock, ECZ-Otwock, Poland
Expected research results and products
Products and expected results of the research activities of PhD candidates: (preferably on the basis of quantitative criteria and/or time) books, publications and necklaces in magazines, patents, software, postgraduate papers in national and international conferences, etc.
Doctoral programme Academic Board
Name Surname University/Institution Qualification
Elena Bonora Università di Bologna Professore Associato
Eugenio Brunocilla Università di Bologna Professore Ordinario
Niccolò Daddi Università di Bologna Professore Associato
Antonietta D'Errico Università di Bologna Professore Ordinario
Franco D'Ovidio Columbia University (NY, USA) Professore Associato
Gebrine El Khoury Université Catholique de Louvain (Brussels, Belgium) Professore Ordinario
Michelangelo Fiorentino Università di Bologna Professore Associato
Nazzareno Galiè Università di Bologna Professore Ordinario
Gaetano Domenico Gargiulo Università di Bologna Professore Ordinario
Luigi Gnudi King’s College London (UK) Professore Ordinario
Nicholas S. Hill Tufts University (Boston, MA, USA) Professore Ordinario
Gaetano La Manna Università di Bologna Professore Ordinario
Giuseppe Marulli Università degli Studi di Bari Professore Associato
Andrea Minervini Università degli Studi di Firenze Professore Ordinario
Alex Mottrie University Ghent (Belgium) Professore Ordinario
Bruno Nardo Università della Calabria Professore Associato Confermato
Stefano Nava Università di Bologna Professore Ordinario
Davide Pacini Università di Bologna Professore Ordinario
Lorenzo Rosso Università degli Studi di Milano Professore Associato
Lorenzo Spaggiari Università degli Studi di Milano Professore Ordinario
Adam Torbicki Medical Centre for Postgraduate Education (Poland) Professore Ordinario
Carlo Ventura Università di Bologna Professore Ordinario
Rocco Maurizio Zagari Università di Bologna Professore Associato Confermato