Maria Teresa Mercante
Head
She holds a Master’s degree in Biological Sciences from the University of L’Aquila (1988). Since 1993, she has been working at the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise, where she currently serves as Head of the Viral Vaccine and Diagnostic Products Production Department and, ad interim, as Head of the Laboratory for the Production of Diagnostics, Reagents and Vaccines.
She holds a Master’s degree in Biological Sciences from the University of L’Aquila (1988). Since 1993, she has been working at the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise, where she currently serves as Head of the Viral Vaccine and Diagnostic Products Production Department and, ad interim, as Head of the Laboratory for the Production of Diagnostics, Reagents and Vaccines.
Between 1993 and 1999, at the Serum and Vaccine Management Laboratory, she gained experience in the preparation of dossiers for vaccine registration (marketing authorisation granted by the Ministry of Health).
From 1999 to 2003, she worked in the Quality Assurance and Control Department, acquiring experience in laboratory accreditation according to ISO 17025.
From 2009 to 2018, she worked in the Sample Reception and Control Department, which she headed from 2019 to 2021. During this period, she gained experience as LIMS administrator. As administrator and contact person for the Laboratory Information System (SILAB), she was part of the working group for the SILAB for Africa project and, at national level, participated in the working groups for the SILAB_Sicilia and SILAB_PB projects.
The activities of the Department she currently leads focus on the development of experimental vaccines against viral diseases, with particular attention to exotic diseases, and on the production of viral and protozoan diagnostic tools for research and for the serological diagnosis of infectious diseases using monoclonal antibodies and recombinant proteins.
A large part of her work is dedicated to participation in national and international research projects aimed at the development and validation of new immunising products, monoclonal antibodies, recombinant proteins, and diagnostic tools for the diagnosis of infectious animal diseases.
She has participated in numerous conferences and training courses, both as a participant and as a lecturer. Author of 32 publications in national and international journals.
