Meet the team | EUMadness Project

Management and Coordination of the Project

Fabrizio Schifano

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Professor Fabrizio Schifano studied at the University of Padua, qualifying in both psychiatry and clinical pharmacology. He spent several years as a consultant in the Italian health service before moving to the UK to lecture at St George’s University of London. In 2006 he joined the University of Hertfordshire as Professor of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics – a role he combines with part-time work as an addiction psychiatrist for the Hertfordshire NHS Trust…

Anna Hammerin DeSilva

PROJECT MANAGER

Anna Hammerin DeSilva is an International and Certified Professional Secretary with a strong dedication to professionalism and excellence. Anna has vast international experience as Private Secretary and Executive Assistant – a career which has taken her from Sweden to Bermuda, New York, Miami, Geneva, Lausanne, London and Monte Carlo…

WORKSTREAM 1

Monitors and analyses fatalities and ‘near-misses’ related to NPS ingestion

John Corkery

WORKSTREAM 1 LEAD

John Corkery joined the University of Hertfordshire in April 2011 as Research Co-ordinator in the Department of Pharmacy. Prior to this he was the Programme Manager of National Programme on Substance Abuse Deaths from 7 March 2005 to October 2010 & Volatile Substance Abuse Mortality Project from April 2009 to October 2010; he remains an advisor to the programme which he helped to set up in 1997 when he was working in the Drugs & Alcohol Research Section of the Home Office…

Eva Keller

Dr Eva Keller is a full professor at the Semmelweis University Department of Forensic and Insurance Medicine, in Budapest, where she has been employed 33 years. Dr. Keller received her medical degree at the Semmelweis University in 1981. She has specialized in anatomic pathology, forensic and insurance medicine…

Renata Csonka

Dr Renata Csonka was born in Vasarosnameny in 1983. She graduated from the Semmelweis University Faculty of Medicine, in 2010. After the graduation Dr Csonka started the post graduation programme at the Semmelweis University Department of Forensic and Insurance Medicine…

Claudia Rimondo

Since 2007, Dr Claudia Rimondo is the operational coordinator and manager of the National Early Warning System (N.E.W.S.) – Department of Antidrug Policies, Presidency of the Council of Ministers…

Catia Seri

Since 2010, Dr Catia Seri is a chemist consultant for the Italian National Early Warning System (N.E.W.S.) – Department of Antidrug Policies, Presidency of the Council of Ministers, c/o the Addiction Department, ULSS 20, Verona, dealing with the description of the analytical and pharmaco-toxicological aspects of new psychoactive substances reported through the activities of the N.E.W.S…

WORKSTREAM 2

Combines predictive modelling of NPS pharmacological activity with Raman Spectroscopy

Jacqueline Stair

WORKSTREAM 2 LEAD

Dr Jacqueline Stair is a senior lecturer in analytical science at the University of Hertfordshire.She obtained a BS in Chemistry at Michigan State University and earned a PhD in Analytical Chemistry at the University of Texas at Austin…

Stewart Kirton

Dr Stewart Kirton joined the academic team at the School of Pharmacy in November 2008. Prior to this he spent seven years working as a research scientist for a number of pharmaceutical companies, specialising in computer-aided drug design and development…

Mire Zloh

Professor Zloh has taken a position of the Head of Pharmaceutical Chemistry in the Department of Pharmacy in January 2013.

Prior to his present position was Senior Lecturer at the UCL School of Pharmacy and was responsible for the integrated structural chemistry service that provides NMR, MS and CHN analysis to internal and external users. He was an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Pharmacy in Belgrade for the Clinical Chemistry Instrumentation course before moving to London…

Eleftherios Samaras

Dr Eleftherios Samaras is a Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of Hertfordshire. His research is focused on the chemical analysis and predictive modelling of designer drugs.

Dr Samaras completed his BSc in Biochemistry at the University of Central Lancashire (UK), his MRes in Bioinformatics at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne (UK) and his PhD in Pharmacy at the Medway School of Pharmacy of the Universities of Kent and Greenwich (UK)…

Raffaele Giorgetti

Professor Raffaele Giorgetti holds the degree of Full Professor in Legal Medicine at the Università Politecnica della Marche, Italy.

He is author of more than 150 papers published in the following subjects: forensic toxicology, forensic genetics, forensic pathology, professional medical malpractice, public health care, social assistance and professional regulations…

Carmela Centola

Dr Carmela Centola is a Biologist.

Currently she holds a PhD in Legal Medicine – Forensic Toxicology at Università Politecnica delle Marche (Italy).

Dr Centola studies NPS and conventional drugs, drinking and driving, driving under influence, psychomotor performance.

She is a member of GTFI (Giovani Tossicologi Forensi Italiani)– Young Section…

WORKSTREAM 3

Examines pharmacological and behavioural effects of NPS

Colin Davidson

WORKSTREAM 3 LEAD

Dr Colin Davidson is a senior lecturer in neuropharmacology at St George’s, University of London. After a BSc in Biology and Psychology at the University of Edinburgh he completed a PhD at the London Hospital Medical College where he researched the long-term mechanisms of action of paroxetine…

Gaetano Di Chiara

Born in Cagliari on 22/11/1945, Professor Gaetano Di Chiara earned a degree in Medicine and Surgery at the University of Cagliari, Italy. He spent the next three years in the Laboratory of Chemical Pharamcology of the National Institutes of Health at Bethesda, Maryland (USA)…

Maria Antonietta De Luca

Dr Maria Antonietta De Luca is a Researcher at the Neuropsychopharmacology Unit of the Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Cagliari (Italy). After a M.Sc. in Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Technology, she completed a Specialization in Toxicology and a PhD in Pharmacology of Drug Abuse at the University of Cagliari, supervised by Prof. Gaetano Di Chiara…

Emilio Ambrosio Flores

Emilio Ambrosio is Full Professor of Psychobiology at the National University for Distance Learning (UNED) in Madrid, Spain. He obtained two different Bachelor Degrees, Biological Sciences and Psychology, at the Autonomous University of Madrid in 1979. His PhD was also earned at the same University in 1985 working on sex differences in cerebral alpha-adrenergic receptors…

Raquel Santos Toscano

Raquel Santos is lecturer and research assistant at the National University for Distance Learning (UNED) in Madrid, Spain. She obtained her Bachelor Degree in Psychology at the Autonomous University of Madrid in 2011, and her Master Degree at the National University for Distance Learning (UNED) in 2012…

WORKSTREAM 4

Prepares educational materials and resources on NPS, in a number of European languages, on the health risks of NPS for use in inter-professional medical, pharmacy and health education settings

Colin Davidson

WORKSTREAM 4 LEAD

Dr Colin Davidson is a senior lecturer in neuropharmacology at St George’s, University of London. After a BSc in Biology and Psychology at the University of Edinburgh he completed a PhD at the London Hospital Medical College where he researched the long-term mechanisms of action of paroxetine…

Christine Goodair

Christine worked for more than 20 years in special information services. Her last information service role was at Drugscope , where she managed the website and information services as well as working on two large pan-European projects on addictions information…

Raffaele Giorgetti

Professor Raffaele Giorgetti holds the degree of Full Professor in Legal Medicine at the Università Politecnica della Marche, Italy.

He is author of more than 150 papers published in the following subjects: forensic toxicology, forensic genetics, forensic pathology, professional medical malpractice, public health care, social assistance and professional regulations…

Carmela Centola

Dr Carmela Centola is a Biologist.

Currently she holds a PhD in Legal Medicine – Forensic Toxicology at Università Politecnica delle Marche (Italy).

Dr Centola studies NPS and conventional drugs, drinking and driving, driving under influence, psychomotor performance.

She is a member of GTFI (Giovani Tossicologi Forensi Italiani)– Young Section…

Simon Maxwell

Professor Simon Maxwell is Professor of Student Learning/Clinical Pharmacology and Director of Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics teaching at the University of Edinburgh, where he has been active in developing e-Learning strategies to support education in this area…

Norbert Scherbaum

Prof. Dr. Norbert Scherbaum is the head of the Department for Addiction Medicine and Addictive Behaviour. In addition, he holds a professorship for clinical addiction research at the medical faculty of the University of Duisburg-Essen and is also head of the local addiction research group.

Michael Specka

Dr. Michael Specka is a psychologist and researcher at the university of Duisburg-Essen, Germany. As a member of the department of Addictive Behaviour and Addiction Medicine he has been conducting and publishing research in the field of substance dependence for now 20 years…

Giovanni Martinotti

Dr Giovanni Martinotti is currently Senior Researcher in Psychiatry and Academic Lead of the Research Unit on Addiction at the Department of Neuroscience and Imaging, University “G.d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara…

Rita Santacroce

Dr Rita Santacroce is a MD and a psychiatrist at the Research Unit on Addiction, Department of Neuroscience and Imaging, University “G.d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara. Her research activities are mainly focused on Novel Psychoactive Substances (NPS) and substance abuse/misuse, as well as other forms of addiction

Magi Farré

Dr Magi Farré is a physician with medical specialization in Clinical Pharmacologist. He works as Consultant in the Human Pharmacology and Neurosciences Unit at IMIM-Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institut (Par de Salut MAR, Barcelona)…

Marta Torrens

Psychiatrist, Professor of Psychiatry , Autonomous University of Barcelona; Head of Addiction Program at the Institute of Neuropsychiatry and Addictions-Parc de Salut Mar, Barcelona, Spain; Member of the Clinical Commission of the National Plan on Drugs from the Spanish Ministry of Health…

OTHER TEAM MEMBERS AND CONTRIBUTORS

Laura Orsolini

Dr Laura Orsolini is a physician (graduated at the University of Pavia – Department of Public Health, Experimental and Forensic Medicine – Division of Forensic Sciences, in 2009) and a researcher interested in Novel Psychoactive Substances (NPS)…

Duccio Papanti

Dr Duccio Papanti is physician (graduated at the University of Trieste – Medical School of Trieste, in 2009) and a researcher interested in Novel Psychoactive Substances Phenomenon, Pharmacovigilance and Toxicovigilance, Addiction and Clinical Psychopharmacology…

Nicoletta Onori

Dr Nicoletta Onori is a researcher at the Institute of Legal Medicine, Universtià Politecnica delle Marche, Italy.

She deals with forensic genetics and toxicology and undertakes studies on alcohol and drugs addiction…

Amira Guirguis

Amira Guirguis is a pharmacist and a visiting lecturer at the University of Hertfordshire – Department of Pharmacy – Hatfield. She obtained a BSc in Accountancy at the University of Helwan…

Kathryn Kellett

Kathryn Kellett is a research assistant in pharmaceutical chemistry at the University of Hertfordshire – Department of Pharmacy – Hatfield. She obtained a BSc and MChem in Medicinal Chemistry at Loughborough University…