Giovanni Ligresti, PhD

Associate Professor, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Biography

My laboratory focuses on lung repair and pulmonary fibrosis. We are currently investigating molecular mechanisms implicated in the differentiation of lung fibroblasts into myofibroblasts during lung fibrosis, with particular emphasis on transcriptional and epigenetic mechanisms driving persistent fibrogenesis in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). We have recently discovered that in the lung, myofibroblast differentiation occurs through the engagement of chromatin modifier enzymes and epigenetic readers. We found that the histone methyltransferase G9a and the epigenetic reader CBX5 play a critical role in lung fibroblast activation, and that targeting these epigenetic modifiers enhanced mitochondrial function, blocked ECM protein secretion, and attenuated lung fibrogenesis.
In addition, my laboratory is interested in investigating the impact of aging on the development of pulmonary fibrosis. We have recently discovered that the endothelium of aged mouse lungs is dysfunctional and this abnormality leads to capillary loss and persistent lung fibrosis following injury. Using a multi-omics approach (RNA-seq, ATAC-seq, and scRNA-seq) we have identified transcriptional programs in lung endothelial cells orchestrating lung vascular repair and whose abnormal activation with aging leads to persistent lung fibrosis.

Publications

  • Published 7/26/2025

    Antar SA, Mensah E, Dahlka J, Aziz M, Halouani A, Imani S, Parashar A, Raslan AA, Benezra R, Fraidenraich D, Ligresti G, Sassi Y. A Simultaneous Inhibition of ID1 and ID3 Protects Against Pulmonary Fibrosis. bioRxiv. 2025 Jul 26. PMID: 40777426.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 7/25/2025

    Dinc MT, El-Adili F, Lui JK, Kripesh S, York M, Trojanowski M, Ligresti G, Lafyatis R, Trojanowska M, Bujor AM. Transcriptomic profiling of scleroderma monocytes reveals links with cardiovascular complications, implicating Notch and interferon pathways. J Scleroderma Relat Disord. 2025 Jul 25; 23971983251356123. PMID: 40735732.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 6/1/2025

    Hong J, Pham TX, Lee J, Raslan AA, Nicolas K, Sharov A, Meridew JA, Urrutia RA, Lomberk G, Huang SK, Ligresti G. Targeting the Epigenetic Regulator CBX5 Promotes Fibroblast Metabolic Reprogramming and Inhibits Lung Fibrosis. Am J Respir Cell Mol Biol. 2025 Jun; 72(6):627-642. PMID: 39642371.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 5/24/2025

    Gianì F, Roos BB, Link PA, Somasundram B, Dresler SR, Sciacca E, Vancheri C, Javeed N, Ligresti G, Tschumperlin DJ, Caporarello N. Vascular protection by young circulating extracellular vesicles ameliorates aging-related pulmonary fibrosis. Am J Physiol Cell Physiol. 2025 Jul 01; 329(1):C159-C169. PMID: 40411768.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 1/1/2025

    Aplin AC, Ligresti G, Nicosia RF. Serum-Free Mouse Aortic Ring Assay of Angiogenesis. Methods Mol Biol. 2025; 2956:97-110. PMID: 40859078.

    Read at: PubMed

View All 70 Publications:   View Full Profile in BUMC

Other Positions

  • Member, Pulmonary Center
    Boston University
  • Graduate Faculty (Primary Mentor of Grad Students)
    Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, Graduate Medical Sciences

Websites

Education

  • University of Trieste, PhD
  • University of Trieste, MS
  • University of Trieste, BS

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