Maria Pellizzaro
About Maria Pellizzaro
Maria Pellizzaro is a Managing Scientist with extensive experience in toxicology and chemistry. She has worked at various organizations, including Unilever and Lhasa Limited, and holds a Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Leeds.
Current Role as Managing Scientist
Maria Pellizzaro has been serving as a Managing Scientist since 2020 in Harrogate, England, United Kingdom. In this role, she oversees scientific projects and leads initiatives related to toxicology and regulatory assessments. Her responsibilities include managing teams and ensuring compliance with industry standards and regulations.
Previous Experience in Toxicology and Chemistry
Prior to her current position, Maria worked as a Senior Scientist from 2017 to 2020 and as a Scientist from 2015 to 2017, both in Harrogate, United Kingdom. She also held a position as a Scientist at Unilever for five months in 2013 and worked at Lhasa Limited from 2012 to 2015. At Lhasa Limited, she specialized in writing structural alerts for toxicological endpoints and gained experience in in vitro dermal absorption studies.
Educational Background in Chemistry
Maria completed her Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Chemistry at the University of Leeds from 2008 to 2012. Prior to her Ph.D., she earned a Master of Chemistry (MChem) degree in Chemistry with Medicinal Chemistry from the same university from 2004 to 2008. Her academic training provided a strong foundation in chemical research and toxicology.
Expertise in In Silico Methods
Maria has extensive knowledge of in silico methods, particularly Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationship (QSAR) modeling. She is proficient in using various tools such as Derek Nexus, Leadscope, OECD QSAR Toolbox, TEST, VEGA, ToxTree, and ECOSAR. Her expertise supports her work in genotoxicity predictions and regulatory toxicology.
Regulatory Compliance and Risk Assessment
In her professional capacity, Maria has developed strategies to address regulatory toxicology and exposure concerns. She employs higher tier exposure assessment approaches in her work, focusing on the assessment of crop metabolites and impurities in compliance with EFSA and EC regulations.