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Pierfrancesco Pagella

Associate Professor, Docent

Docent in Biotechnology

Organ (re)generation and genome engineering

My research interests involve the study of the mechanisms underlying organ and cell diversity, and using this knowledge to generate bio-engineered 3D human organs, complete with innervation, vascularization, and immune compartments. To this end, I combine stem cell biology, tissue engineering, organ-on-chip, genomics and proteomics approaches. Strong attention is dedicated to the oro/craniofacial complex, using models such as teeth and cancers of the oral cavity.

Research

Teaserpic for research group

Bioengineering human oral tissues and disease models

In our team, we strive to understand how tissue-resident cells, extracellular matrices, innervation, vasculature and immune cells cooperate and modulate each other’s responses to ensure organ-level functions and topographies.
Video

Video lecture

Title: The Time-Resolved Genomic Impact of Wnt/β-catenin Signaling

Watch my lecture from the webinar series "Cell Biology Scandinavia".

Lectures and teaching

Talk on Regenerative Medicine

Invited talk at the MRCRM 3rd International Meeting on Regenerative Medicine 2025, in Bergen, Norway.

The 3rd International Meeting on Regenerative Medicine showcased groundbreaking research and clinical trials utilizing advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs) for various diseases and wound healing. The conference further featured bio-engineered human organs and explored strategies to advance and accelerate the development of ATMPs in Norway.

Pierfrancesco Pagella was invited as international speaker and delivered a talk, titled "Imitate to Understand, Understand to Imitate: Biomimetic Approaches for Bioengineering Oral Tissues & Disease Models.

Biotechnology Manufacturing, 6 credits

Biotechnology Manufacturing, 6 credits

Production of Biopharmaceuticals, 6 credits

Production of Biopharmaceuticals, 6 credits

Design of Biotechnical Processes, Project Course, 6 credits

Design of Biotechnical Processes, Project Course, 6 credits

News

Two male researchers in front of a computer.

Mechanism in embryonic development makes cancer aggressive

Tumour cells in colorectal cancer exploit an important signalling pathway that normally controls embryo development. Researchers have now shown how a protein that controls limb development make colorectal cancer cells more likely to spread.
Two men in a laboratory.

Discovery reveals how cells respond to each other

The same message can be interpreted differently by different individuals – also among cells. This is shown in a study by researchers at Linköping University who studied cell communication.

Publications

2025

Amaia Jauregi Miguel, Simon Söderholm, Tamina Weiss, Anna Nordin, Valeria Ghezzi, Salome M. Brutsch, Pierfrancesco Pagella, Yorick van de Grift, Gianluca Zambanini, Jacopo Ulisse, Alessandro Mattia, Ruslan Deviatiiarov, Elena Faustini, Lavanya Moparthi, Wenjing Zhong, Bergthor Björnsson, Per A Sandström, Erik Lundqvist, Francisca Lottersberger, Stefan Koch, Andreas E. Moor, Xiao-Feng Sun, Eleonore von Castelmur, Guojun Shengo, Claudio Cantù (2025) The developmental factor TBX3 engages with the Wnt/ß-catenin transcriptional complex in colorectal cancer to regulate metastasis genes Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, Vol. 122, Article 2419691122 (Article in journal) Continue to DOI
Anna Nordin, Gianluca Zambanini, Mattias Enar Jonasson, Tamina Weiss, Yorick van de Grift, Pierfrancesco Pagella, Claudio Cantù (2025) Construction of an atlas of transcription factor binding during mouse development identifies popular regulatory regions Development, Vol. 152, Article dev204311 (Article in journal) Continue to DOI

2024

Pierfrancesco Pagella, Chai Foong Lai, Laurence Pirenne, Claudio Cantù, Martin E. Schwab, Thimios A. Mitsiadis (2024) An unexpected role of neurite outgrowth inhibitor A as regulator of tooth enamel formation International Journal of Oral Science, Vol. 16, Article 60 (Article in journal) Continue to DOI
Anna Nordin, Pierfrancesco Pagella, Gianluca Zambanini, Claudio Cantù (2024) Exhaustive identification of genome-wide binding events of transcriptional regulators Nucleic Acids Research, Vol. 52, Article e40 (Article in journal) Continue to DOI
Giulia Pizzolato, Lavanya Moparthi, Pierfrancesco Pagella, Claudio Cantù, Padraig D´arcy, Stefan Koch (2024) The tumour suppressor p53 is a negative regulator of the carcinoma-associated transcription factor FOXQ1 Journal of Biological Chemistry, Vol. 300, Article 107126 (Article in journal) Continue to DOI

2023

Anamaria Balic, Dilara Perver, Pierfrancesco Pagella, Hubert Rehrauer, Bernd Stadlinger, Andreas E. Moor, Viola Vogel, Thimios A. Mitsiadis (2023) Extracellular matrix remodelling in dental pulp tissue of carious human teeth through the prism of single-cell RNA sequencing International Journal of Oral Science, Vol. 15 (Article in journal) Continue to DOI
Thimios A. Mitsiadis, Pierfrancesco Pagella, Terence D. Capellini, Moya Meredith Smith (2023) The Notch-mediated circuitry in the evolution and generation of new cell lineages: the tooth model Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences (CMLS), Vol. 80, Article 182 (Article in journal) Continue to DOI
Pierfrancesco Pagella, Simon Söderholm, Anna Nordin, Gianluca Zambanini, Valeria Ghezzi, Amaia Jauregi Miguel, Claudio Cantù (2023) The time-resolved genomic impact of Wnt/(3-catenin signaling CELL SYSTEMS, Vol. 14, p. 563-581.e7 (Article in journal) Continue to DOI
Anna Nordin, Gianluca Zambanini, Pierfrancesco Pagella, Claudio Cantù (2023) The CUT & RUN suspect list of problematic regions of the genome Genome Biology, Vol. 24, Article 185 (Article in journal) Continue to DOI
Simon Söderholm, Amaia Jauregi Miguel, Pierfrancesco Pagella, Valeria Ghezzi, Gianluca Zambanini, Anna Nordin, Claudio Cantù (2023) Single-cell response to Wnt signaling activation reveals uncoupling of Wnt target gene expression Experimental Cell Research, Vol. 429, Article 113646 (Article in journal) Continue to DOI

2022

Thimios A. Mitsiadis, Lucia Jimenez-Rojo, Anamaria Balic, Silvio Weber, Paul Saftig, Pierfrancesco Pagella (2022) Adam10-dependent Notch signaling establishes dental epithelial cell boundaries required for enamel formation iScience, Vol. 25, p. 105154-105154, Article 105154 (Article in journal) Continue to DOI
Gianluca Zambanini, Anna Nordin, Mattias Jonasson, Pierfrancesco Pagella, Claudio Cantù (2022) A new CUT&RUN low volume-urea (LoV-U) protocol optimized for transcriptional co-factors uncovers Wnt/beta-catenin tissue-specific genomic targets Development, Vol. 149, Article dev201124 (Article in journal) Continue to DOI
Chai Foong Lai, Juliet Shen, Anamaria Balic, Pierfrancesco Pagella, Martin E. Schwab, Thimios A. Mitsiadis (2022) Nogo-A Regulates the Fate of Human Dental Pulp Stem Cells toward Osteogenic, Adipogenic, and Neurogenic Differentiation Cells, Vol. 11, Article 3415 (Article in journal) Continue to DOI

2021

Pierfrancesco Pagella, Laura de Vargas Roditi, Bernd Stadlinger, Andreas E. Moor, Thimios A. Mitsiadis (2021) A single-cell atlas of human teeth iScience, Vol. 24, p. 102405-102405, Article 102405 (Article in journal) Continue to DOI

2020

Pierfrancesco Pagella, Shayee Miran, Estrela Neto, Ivan Martin, Meriem Lamghari, Thimios A. Mitsiadis (2020) Human dental pulp stem cells exhibit enhanced properties in comparison to human bone marrow stem cells on neurites outgrowth The FASEB Journal, Vol. 34, p. 5499-5511 (Article in journal) Continue to DOI

CV

2024-present
Associate professor, Department of physics, chemistry and biology, Division of biophysics and bioengineering, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden

2021-2023 
Postdoctoral research Fellow, Wallenberg Center for Molecular Medicine (WCMM) and Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences, Division of Molecular Medicine and Virology, Linköpings University, Linköping, Sweden

2017-2021
Lecturer/Senior Scientist (Oberassistent), Institute of Oral Biology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.

04/2018 
Visiting scientist, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York City, NY, U.S.A.

2015-2017
Postdoctoral Fellow, Institute of Oral Biology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.

10/2012
Visiting student, Center of Biomedical Engineering (INEB), University of Porto, Porto, Portugal.

2011-2015
PhD. Molecular Life Sciences PhD Program, ETH/University of Zurich. Institute of Oral Biology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.

07-11/2011
Research Associate, Group Prof. S. K. Nicolis, Department of Biology and Biotechnologies, Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy.

2010-2011
Visiting Student, Institute for Neuropathology and Prion Research, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany.

2008-2011
MSc. In Biology (110/110 cum laude), Università degli Studi di Milano Bicocca, Milan, Italy.

2005-2008
BSc. In Biological Sciences (110/110), Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy.

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Organisation

Laboratory of molecular materials

We are a multidisciplinary team with a passion for science. Our research is focused on design and development of molecules, soft materials and hybrid nanoscale components and devices for a wide range of biomedical applications.
cells and atoms

Biophysics and bioengineering (BBIOBIO)

We use and develop concepts and tools from physics and chemistry to solve problems of biological and biomedical relevance, and the activities span from basic to applied research.

Department of Physics, Chemistry and Biology (IFM)

Undergraduate teaching and research in the areas of biology, chemistry, materials and applied physics and theory and modelling are conducted at this department.

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