ECR 2013 – Final Programme - myESR.org

ESR DignitariesJesús Prieto is professor of medicine and director of the departmentof hepatology and gene therapy at the Centre for AppliedMedical Research at the University of Navarra, Spain. He alsoserves as a consultant internist at the University of NavarraClinic.An expert in the field of hepatology, Prof. Prieto is considered tobe a pioneer of gene therapy in Europe. His research has focusedmainly on understanding the underlying mechanisms of liverdisease and on the development of new therapies for acute andchronic liver damage. He is credited with contributing to theunravelling of the pathogenesis of primary biliary cirrhosis,where he showed that a defect in bicarbonate transport inducesboth bile duct injury and immune dysfunction.Through his research, Prof. Prieto has analysed the role of IGF-Ideficiency in the progression of liver cirrhosis and has producedclinical and experimental data to show that IGF-I replacementtherapy can induce regression of liver fibrosis and a reductionof portal pressure, along with a significant improvement in liverfunction. In addition, he has identified cardiotrophin-1 as amolecule with potent hepatoprotective properties, making it anatural defence against apoptosis and a potential therapy forpatients with acute, severe liver damage.A member of many national and international societies dedicatedto the study of the liver, Prof. Prieto has served as presidentof the Spanish Association for the Study of the Liver and on theScientific Committee of the European Association for the Studyof the Liver. He was made Doctor Honoris Causa by the Universityof Porto (Portugal) and the University Austral of BuenosAires (Argentina).Prof. Prieto has authored more than 300 articles, which haveappeared in many prestigious peer-reviewed journals such as theNew England Journal of Medicine, Journal of Experimental Medicine,Journal of Clinical Investigation, Cell Metabolism, PNAS,Gastroenterology, Journal of Clinical Oncology and many others.33