Stefano Da Sacco, PhD
Dr. Stefano Da Sacco earned his PhD in Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine through a joint program between the University of Padua, Italy, and the University of Southern California. He completed his postdoctoral training in the laboratory of Dr. Roger De Filippo and Dr. Laura Perin.
Dr. Da Sacco's research focuses on understanding the mechanisms of kidney development and disease, emphasizing the role of renal stem cells in kidney repair and regeneration. His laboratory aims to identify novel therapeutic targets and develop regenerative medicine approaches to treat kidney diseases.
Dr. Da Sacco's lab has developed a functional glomerulus-on-a-chip platform, which models the human glomerular filtration barrier using human podocytes and glomerular endothelial cells. This innovative system enables studying disease mechanisms, drug testing, and biomarker discovery in a controlled environment. The glomerulus-on-a-chip has been instrumental in advancing our understanding of renal pathophysiology and holds promise for high-throughput screening of therapeutic compounds.
Dr. Da Sacco has received research awards from the National Institutes of Health, Alport Syndrome Foundation, and the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine. His work is currently supported by NIH/National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases RO1s, a Pediatric Nephrology Research Consortium grant award, and industry collaborations.
Dr. Da Sacco is a member of several professional societies, including the American Society of Nephrology, the International Society of Glomerular Diseases, The Pediatric Nephrology Research Consortium, and ISSNAF. He serves as a reviewer for NIH study sections and the Italian Ministry of Health among others. He has published extensively in leading scientific journals and is a reviewer for several peer-reviewed publications.
Education
2009 – PhD, Tissue Engineering and Stem Cells, University of Southern California and University of Padova, Padova, Italy
2006 – MS, Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Drug Design, University of Padova, Padova Italy
2014 – Post-doctoral Research Fellow, Urology, USC, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles
2016 – Post-doctoral Research Associate, Urology, USC, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles
Accomplishments
2011 – Present, American Society of Nephrology – Active Member
2011 – 2012, International Society for Stem Cell Research – Active Member
2010 – Present, ISSNAF – Supporting member
2015 – Present, American Heart Association – Member
NIH/NIDDK (PI) RO1 DK123234 2020-2025
NIH/NIDDK (Co-PI) RO1 DK133459 2023-2027
Boehringer Ingelheim (PI) 2023-2025
PNRC Grant Award (Co-PI) 2025-2026
Publications
Zhang Q, Bin S, Budge K, Petrosyan A, Villani V, Aguiari P, Vink C, Wetzels J, Soloyan H, La Manna G, Podestà MA, Molinari P, Sedrakyan S, Lemley KV, De Filippo RE, Perin L, Cravedi P, Da Sacco S. C3aR-initiated signaling is a critical mechanism of podocyte injury in membranous nephropathy. JCI Insight. 2024 Jan 16;9(4). doi: 10.1172/jci.insight.172976. PMID: 38227377
Petrosyan A, Cravedi P, Villani V, Angeletti A, Manrique J, Renieri A, De Filippo RE, Perin L, Da Sacco S. A glomerulus-on-a-chip to recapitulate the human glomerular filtration barrier. Nat Commun. 2019 Aug 13;10(1):3656. doi: 10.1038/s41467-019-11577-z. PMID: 31409793
Petrosyan A, Villani V, Aguiari P, Thornton ME, Wang Y, Rajewski A, Zhou S, Cravedi P, Grubbs BH, De Filippo RE, Sedrakyan S, Lemley KV, Csete M, Da Sacco S, Perin L. Identification and Characterization of the Wilms Tumor Cancer Stem Cell. Adv Sci (Weinh). 2023 Jul;10(20):e2206787. doi: 10.1002/advs.202206787. PMID: 37114795
Da Sacco S, Lemley KV, Sedrakyan S, Zanusso I, Petrosyan A, Peti-Peterdi J, Burford J, De Filippo RE, Perin L. A novel source of cultured podocytes. PLoS One. 2013;8(12):e81812. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0081812. eCollection 2013. PMID: 24349133
Research
Dr. Stefano Da Sacco's research centers on understanding the mechanisms of kidney development and disease, with a particular focus on podocytopathies. His laboratory aims to identify novel therapeutic targets and develop regenerative medicine approaches to treat kidney diseases. A key innovation from his lab is the development of a functional glomerulus-on-a-chip platform, which models the human glomerular filtration barrier using human podocytes and glomerular endothelial cells.
The Saban Research Institute
4661 Sunset Blvd.
5th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90027
United States
