The Preclinical Research Laboratory operates in the field of biomedical and biotechnological research for clinical and application purposes. Created and managed by UPMC and ISMETT in collaboration with the Istituto Zootecnico della Sicilia, this facility is unique in its kind in Sicily and one of the few existing in central and southern Italy.

With the scientific collaboration of the University of Pittsburgh, the laboratory works on the development of new diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for patients affected with end-stage organ failure.

The goal of the laboratory is also to provide research teams working at ISMETT appropriate support in terms of equipment and know-how thanks to the presence of highly-skilled personnel.

The laboratory’s main areas of research:

• Applied biotechnology and new therapeutic strategies.
• Research and development of new systems for identification, amplification, and use of stem cells.
• Creation and study of models of human diseases.

The research outcomes will improve the care of patients with end-stage organ failure and patients listed for a transplant. They will help implement new surgical transplantation techniques aimed at increasing the number of performable transplants despite the small number of donors – mainly abdominal and thoracic solid organs – cell transplants, developing alternative techniques to transplant in end-stage organ failure and innovative models of surgical training.

The Preclinical Research Lab has an Ethics Committee, composed of national and international representatives from the scientific world, which is responsible for evaluating, monitoring and addressing the proposals of the various research teams in an independent manner.