Maria Foti is a researcher at the University of Milano-Bicocca.  She has worked for several years in the field of molecular immunology and cell biology focusing on dendritic cells.  She studied the molecular events associated with dendritic cell early responses, suggesting the role of dendritic cells as the key players in innate immune responses.  From 2002-2004 she was involved in projects in the fields of cancer and toxicology for the selection of biomarkers using the microarray technology.  Since June 2004 Maria has been heading the research team at Genopolis.  Her main duties are to direct the Genopolis research unit and to coordinate external scientific collaborations.