Prof. Michele Maffia, is a full professor of Physiology at the University of Salento, Lecce, Italy and the Scientific Director of General and Human Physiology Lab at the Department of Experimental Medicine. During his thirty-eight years of research experience, prof. Maffia attended national and foreign public laboratories and acquired a high mastery in using the most advanced techniques of cell physiology, molecular biology, proteomics, mass spectrometry, fluorescence microscopy and spectrofluorimetry. Thanks to the funding of European and National projects, Prof. Maffia acquired instrumentation and skills aimed at the study of proteomic and metabolomic signatures in human serum, plasma, lymphomonocytes, liquor and in cell models, immortalized and primary cells, that were used for the identification of new molecular markers of neurodegeneration and cancer.Prof. Michele Maffia is also the scientist responsible for the Clinical Proteomic Lab at the “V Fazzi” hospital (agreement between the University of Salento and the Local Health Authority), which since 2008 has been involved in research activities applied to: i. the definition of molecular and cellular mechanisms related to the onset of neurodegenerative pathologies; ii. the mechanisms of action of some bioactive molecules of plant origin; iii. the use of nanoformulations, produced in collaboration with the CNR-Nanotec (Lecce) and the Università di Bari, against neurodegenerative diseases and cancer.