Francesco Visioli earned a degree in Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Chemistry from the University of Milan and a PhD in Biotechnology from the University of Brescia (based on work performed at the Louisiana State University Neuroscience Center). After being Full Professor of physiopathology at the Université Paris 6 “Pierre et Marie Curie”, where he directed the “Micronutrients and cardiovascular disease” unit and being Senior Investigator at the Madrid Institute for Advanced Studies (IMDEA)-Food, he is now Professor of human nutrition at the University of Padua, Italy. Formerly involved in neurochemistry, Dr. Visioli’s research currently concerns essential fatty acids, namely those of the omega 3 series, and polyphenols, as related to atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease. In particular, the Visioli group discovered the biological and pharmacological properties of phenolic compounds from olive oil, including hydroxytyrosol. In addition, Dr. Visioli is studying some bioactive components of plant foods, including lycopene from tomato and biophenols from wild greens. His research ranges from in vitro studies of bioactivity (test tubes, cell cultures) to in vivo tests, performed on laboratory animals and/or humans. Nutrigenomics and precision nutrition are current topics of Francesco Visioli's research.
Dr. Visioli was a member of the Board of Directors of the International Society for the Study of Fatty Acids and Lipids (ISSFAL). Currently, Dr. Visioli is the Editor-in-Chief of
PharmaNutrition, Associate Editor of Prostaglandins, Leukotrienes and Essential Fatty Acids, in addition to being a member of the Editorial Board of several other journals.
Currently, Dr. Visioli is the leader of the “Fats and Human Health” division of Eurofed Lipid and was a member of the EFSA GMO Panel. According to the Stanford ranking he is the
top Italian researcher in Nutrition & Dietetics n(c-score: 4.02). In 2023 he received the Federation of European Nutrition Societies (FENS) Award, the most prestigious one in Europe.