Stefania Conti received her degree with honors in Medicine and Surgery in 1985, and her post-graduate degree in Microbiology in 1989 at the University of Parma, Italy. Researcher since 1991, she is from January 2005 Full Professor in Microbiology and Clinical Microbiology at the University of Parma. She has been involved in research projects funded by national and international Institutions, and has co-authored more than 150 publications, including international journals and book chapters. Her research activity, in the fields of medical microbiology and immunology, particularly referred to the yeast killer phenomenon, the expression of yeast stress mannoproteins reactive with secretory IgA, the production of microbicidal monoclonal antibodies, and the development of vaccines against aflatoxins. Her main scientific activity is now devoted to the evaluation of the antimicrobial and antiviral properties of naturally occurring or antibody-derived peptides for the development of new classes of therapeutics active against infectious diseases. She is a member of the Italian Society for Microbiology, the Italian Federation for Human and Animal Mycopathology, the European Confederation of Medical Mycology and the International Society for Human and Animal Mycology.