Born in Milan in 1955, Sergio Dompé is an entrepreneur in the pharmaceutical and biotechnological industries and President of Dompé, a pharmaceutical group developing innovative therapeutic solutions for rare and orphan diseases. 

He has been awarded honorary doctorates in Biotechnology with specialization in pharmaceutics (Bologna, 1996), Medical Biotechnology (L’Aquila, 2005) and Pharmacy (Urbino, 2010).

Among the first in Italy to grasp the true value of biotechnology applied to human health, he has developed an extensive network of partnerships with the most significant research centers for diseases in Dompé’s main therapeutic fields.

In 2016, he funded and established Movendo, an innovative medical company sparkled by an idea by the Italian Institute of Technology: to develop advanced technologies at the service of mankind and products in the field of physical movement rehabilitation. 

In 2004 he was awarded the “La Lombardia per il lavoro” prize, in recognition of his value as one of Lombardy’s most innovative entrepreneurs.

In 2016, he received the Prize of the Foundation Aiuto per la Ricerca sulle Malattie Rare (A.R.M.R.),  awarded to those who distinguished themselves in the research field.

In 2017 he was awarded the Guido Carli Prize. 

Institutional offices held:

• From 1998 to 2004: President of Assobiotec 

• Since 2004: anchor investor in Philogen, a leader in the research and development of antibodies 

• From 2005 to 2011: President of Farmindustria 

• From 2006 to 2011: Chairman of the Evaluation Committee of the CNR (Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, National Research Council) 

• From 2007 to 2015: member of the Board of the IIT (Italian Institute of Technology) Foundation 

• From 2014 to 2016: member of the Patent Experts Committee of the CNR 

• From 2014 to 2016: member of the Board of Regency of the Bank of Italy (Milan office) 

• Since 2015: member of the General Council of Confindustria as representative of Farmindustria 

• Since 2016: Censor of the Bank of Italy (Milan office) 

• Since 2019: Vice President of Assolombarda with delegated powers over Life Sciences 

• 2020: Chairman of the 2021 B20 Life Sciences task-force

Francesca Pasinelli is CEO of the Fondazione Telethon from 2009. Fondazione Telethon is a nonprofit organization that funds research projects aimed at finding a cure for genetic diseases. 

After her degree in Pharmacology, in 1986, she moved into clinical research and subsequently held different managerial positions in multinational pharmaceutical companies (SmithKline Beecham S.p.A.; Schering Plough S.p.A).  

In 1997, she moved to the non-profit sector with Fondazione Telethon. There, as part of her first appointment as Chief Scientific Officer, she introduced a grant selection process based on the international best practices for peer review evaluation of research. In the same years, she also set up a portfolio management system allowing to develop breakthrough therapies for severe genetic diseases, also relying on effective technology transfer programmes.

In 2007, Francesca Pasinelli was awarded the Commendatore al Merito della Repubblica Italiana, honor bestowed by the President of the Italian Republic Giorgio Napolitano. In 2008, she was awarded the Sonia Skarlatos Public Service Award by the American Society for Gene and Cell Therapy, and in 2019 she was appointed the honor of Grande Ufficiale Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana. 

With a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Naples Federico II, Luigi Nicolais was full Professor of Polymer technology and Material science, head of the Department of Industrial process and Materials engineering, and head of the Materials engineering course and the postgraduate course on Biomaterials. He has published more than 600 scientific papers and is ranked as one of the most cited Italian scientists worldwide, particularly in the field of Material Sciences. He was visiting professor at the Washington University of Seattle, and associate professor at the Institute of Materials Science of the University of Connecticut. 

He was Minister of the Council of Campania Region, for the Scientific Research and Technological Innovation. He was then Minister of the Italian Republic for public Administration Reforms and Innovation and member of the Chamber of Deputies. He has also served as President of the National Research Council of Italy (CNR) from 2012 to 2016. Since 2012, he is President of COTEC, a Foundation addressed to the improvement of technological competitiveness, whose honorary president is the President of the Republic.  

In 2016, he was honored as Cavaliere di Gran Croce dell’Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana. He was advisor for research and innovation policies at the Ministry of University and Research with Ministers Moratti, Fedeli and Messa, and, since 2022, he has been appointed as advisor to Minister Bernini.  

He has founded several innovative companies operating in the field of new materials and technology transfer, including Materias, of which he is president.

With a degree in Medical Chemistry from The Sapienza University of Rome, Marcello is a member of the American Chemical Society since 1988 and the Italian Chemistry Society since 2006.

After a brief period spent as a university researcher, he joined Dompé taking on increasingly relevant roles: first as a team leader, then as Research Director, until his current position as Chief Scientific Officer, a role he has held since 2009.

He leads Dompe’s Research and Development activities and pre-clinical and clinical drug development programs - from active ingredient identification to market authorization - including relationships with international regulatory authorities.

In parallel with his involvement in the company, Marcello has filed more than 30 international patents. His work has been published in numerous international scientific journals, for some of which he serves as Associate Editor.

Graduated in Medicine and Surgery summa cum laude, Flavio Mantelli completed a specialization program in ophthalmology and a Ph.D. at the Campus Bio-Medico University of Rome. He also undertook a postdoctoral fellowship in ocular surface glycobiology at the Schepens Eye Research Institute at Harvard Medical School in Boston. 

Prior to joining Dompé farmaceutici, Flavio researched the application of neurotrophins in ophthalmic and neurodegenerative diseases and was an adjunct associate professor of biology at Temple University in Philadelphia. 

His professional experience includes positions at the IRCCS G.B. Bietti Hospital in Rome as  clinical scientist and at the Campus Biomedico University of Rome and the Cornea and Ocular Surface Unit of the Vita-Salute San Raffaele University of Milan as a consultant ophthalmologist. 

Flavio joined Dompé in 2014, and has been instrumental in developing Oxervate into a revolutionary product to cure neurotrophic keratitis, a rare and potentially blinding orphan corneal disease.  

As Chief Medical Officer, a role he has held since 2019,  and Head of R&D for the Ophthalmology and Neurotrophin platforms, Flavio leads all clinical research and development programs in ophthalmology with particular attention to the applications of Nerve Growth Factor in ophthalmic diseases and other therapeutic areas. 

He is the author of numerous scientific publications in international journals.