Giuseppe Scionti (born 1986) is a technology entrepreneur, inventor, and researcher in the fields of

bioengineering Biological engineering or bioengineering is the application of principles of biology and the tools of engineering to create usable, tangible, economically viable products. Biological engineering employs knowledge and expertise from a number ...

and

food tech ''Food Tech'' is a television series on the History Channel History (formerly and commonly known as the History Channel) is an American pay television television broadcaster, network and the flagship channel of A&E Networks, a joint venture b ...

. He is the founder and CEO of Novameat. In 2018 and 2019, he was featured by international mass media as the inventor of the world's first 3D printed plant-based meat substitute.

Background and personal life

Scionti was born in

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

in 1986. He received his PhD cum laude in

Biomedicine Biomedicine (also referred to as Western medicine, mainstream medicine or conventional medicine)

from the

University of Granada The University of Granada (, UGR) is a public university located in the city of Granada, Spain, and founded in 1531 by Emperor Charles V. With more than 60,000 students, it is the fourth largest university in Spain. Apart from the city of Granad ...

(2014) under the supervision of Dr. Antonio Campos Muñoz and Dr. Miguel Alaminos, MSc in Bioengineering (2010) from

Chalmers University of Technology Chalmers University of Technology (, commonly referred to as Chalmers) is a private university, private research university located in Gothenburg, Sweden. Chalmers focuses on engineering and science, but more broadly it also conducts research ...

, and BSc in Bioengineering (2008) from

Polytechnic University of Milan The Polytechnic University of Milan (, abbreviated as PoliMi) is a university in Milan, Italy. It is the largest technical university in the country, with about 40,000 enrolled students. The university offers undergraduate, graduate, and higher ...

Contributions to bioengineering

Scionti's research activities in the fields of

Tissue Engineering Tissue engineering is a biomedical engineering discipline that uses a combination of cells, engineering, materials methods, and suitable biochemical and physicochemical factors to restore, maintain, improve, or replace different types of biolo ...

and

Biomaterial A biomaterial is a substance that has been Biological engineering, engineered to interact with biological systems for a medical purpose – either a therapeutic (treat, augment, repair, or replace a tissue function of the body) or a Medical diag ...

s focused on the design and development of different bioengineering technologies for multiple biomedical applications, and on the generation of novel biomimetic materials with defined microstructure and physical properties, using a variety of natural and synthetic

biomaterial A biomaterial is a substance that has been Biological engineering, engineered to interact with biological systems for a medical purpose – either a therapeutic (treat, augment, repair, or replace a tissue function of the body) or a Medical diag ...

s. He participated in multiple biomedical research projects, with the objective of generating different soft and hard bioengineered tissues such as

bone A bone is a rigid organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells, store minerals, provide structure and support for the body, ...

cartilage Cartilage is a resilient and smooth type of connective tissue. Semi-transparent and non-porous, it is usually covered by a tough and fibrous membrane called perichondrium. In tetrapods, it covers and protects the ends of long bones at the joints ...

cornea The cornea is the transparency (optics), transparent front part of the eyeball which covers the Iris (anatomy), iris, pupil, and Anterior chamber of eyeball, anterior chamber. Along with the anterior chamber and Lens (anatomy), lens, the cornea ...

, full-thickness skin,

oral mucosa The oral mucosa is the mucous membrane lining the inside of the mouth. It comprises stratified squamous epithelium, termed "oral epithelium", and an underlying connective tissue termed '' lamina propria''. The oral cavity has sometimes been des ...

peripheral nerve A nerve is an enclosed, cable-like bundle of nerve fibers (called axons). Nerves have historically been considered the basic units of the peripheral nervous system. A nerve provides a common pathway for the electrochemical nerve impulses called ...

tympanic membrane In the anatomy of humans and various other tetrapods, the eardrum, also called the tympanic membrane or myringa, is a thin, cone-shaped membrane that separates the external ear from the middle ear. Its function is to transmit changes in pressur ...

and

blood vessel Blood vessels are the tubular structures of a circulatory system that transport blood throughout many Animal, animals’ bodies. Blood vessels transport blood cells, nutrients, and oxygen to most of the Tissue (biology), tissues of a Body (bi ...

s implants. In 2013, he was awarded the Award and the status of Correspondent Member by the Royal Academy of Medicine and Surgery of Oriental Andalusia, for a research study on the

in vivo Studies that are ''in vivo'' (Latin for "within the living"; often not italicized in English) are those in which the effects of various biological entities are tested on whole, living organisms or cells, usually animals, including humans, an ...

evaluation of a novel nano-technological human

artificial skin Artificial skin is a collagen scaffold that induces regeneration of skin in mammals such as humans. The term was used in the late 1970s and early 1980s to describe a new treatment for massive burns. It was later discovered that treatment of deep ...

model. In 2014, he co-authored a PCT International Patent on the development of magnetic field-sensitive biomaterials, based on the incorporation of biocompatible

nanoparticle A nanoparticle or ultrafine particle is a particle of matter 1 to 100 nanometres (nm) in diameter. The term is sometimes used for larger particles, up to 500 nm, or fibers and tubes that are less than 100 nm in only two directions. At ...

s, generating the first smart magneto-rheological scaffolds for tissue engineering applications, whose mechanical properties can be controlled by non-contact magnetic forces. In 2015, he was selected in the international jury for the

MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sc ...

Innovators Under 35 Awards Mexico. Between 2015 and 2018, he worked as Assistant Professor and Postdoctoral researcher at the

Polytechnic University of Catalonia The Polytechnic University of Catalonia (, , ; UPC), currently referred to as BarcelonaTech, is the largest polytechnic university in Catalonia, Spain. UPC's objectives are based on internationalization, as it is one of Europe's techni ...

, focusing his research work on

3D printing 3D printing, or additive manufacturing, is the construction of a three-dimensional object from a CAD model or a digital 3D model. It can be done in a variety of processes in which material is deposited, joined or solidified under computer ...

and bioprinting technologies for biomedical applications.

Contributions to food technology

In 2018, Scionti authored and submitted an international patent in the field of

food technology Food technology is a branch of food science that addresses the production, preservation, quality control and research and development of food products. It may also be understood as the science of ensuring that a society is food secure and ha ...

, describing a unique technology that he developed and that allowed the production of fibrous plant-based food using a 3D-printer, mimicking meat texture and its nutritional value. His current focus is on innovating the food system through the development of new plant-based meat products at Novameat. He has been invited as keynote speaker at world-renowned Tech Talks formats and conferences, including a

TEDx TED Conferences, LLC (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is an American-Canadian non-profit media organization that posts international talks online for free distribution under the slogan "Ideas Change Everything" (previously "Ideas Worth Sprea ...

talk in 2018, and gave a speech supporting plant-based meat substitutes at the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...

in 2018. In 2019, Scionti was selected in the list of "Nine Innovators to Watch in 2019" by

Smithsonian (magazine) ''Smithsonian'' is a magazine covering science, history, art, popular culture and innovation. The first issue was published in 1970. History The history of ''Smithsonian'' began when Edward K. Thompson, the retired editor of ''Life'' magazine ...

, and his project at Novameat was included in

Peter Diamandis Peter H. Diamandis ( ; born May 20, 1961) is an American engineer, physician, and entrepreneur. He is best known as the founder and chairman of the XPRIZE Foundation, and the cofounder and executive chairman of Singularity University. He is ...

' article "The 5 Big Breakthroughs to Anticipate in 3D Printing".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scionti, Giuseppe 1986 births Living people Date of birth missing (living people) Chalmers University of Technology alumni 21st-century Italian businesspeople 21st-century Italian inventors Academic staff of the Polytechnic University of Catalonia Polytechnic University of Milan alumni University of Granada alumni