An internationally renowned scientist, Meldolesi played a fundamental role in the development of life sciences in Italy and worldwide.
Born on November 6, 1937, in Rome, Meldolesi earned his degree in Medicine and Surgery from the University of Catania in 1962. After specializing in Endocrinology and Metabolic Diseases, he embarked on what was supposed to be a short research experience at the Institute of Pharmacology of the University of Milan. He often recounted how quickly during this experience he realized that biomedical research, rather than clinical activity, was his true calling.
A second turning point came when Meldolesi was accepted as a postdoctoral fellow at Rockefeller University in New York. Welcoming him was a pioneer in the study of cell structures and functions, George Palade, who would win the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1974. The teachings of an exceptional mentor and exposure to frontier research during a particularly rich period of discovery like the late 1960s turned Meldolesi into an internationally recognized cell biologist.
Alongside George Palade and Jim Jamieson, Meldolesi carried out innovative and meticulous work, characterizing the molecular composition of the different compartments of the secretory pathway. His experiments demonstrated that the membranes of these compartments, despite being dynamically connected, maintain distinct biochemical and functional characteristics. These results provided strong support for the concept of dynamic membrane recycling, according to which anterograde traffic from the endoplasmic reticulum to the extracellular environment is balanced by retrograde transport. Today, it is taken for granted that this mechanism allows for the maintenance of the size and composition of the various compartments of the exocytic pathway despite the continuous flow of secretory proteins. At the time, these findings marked a breakthrough in understanding how certain cells manage to secrete proteins in the right amount and at the appropriate time.
Upon his return to Italy, Meldolesi continued his high-level research at the CNR Center for the Study of Cellular Infrastructure Pharmacology, of which he was a co-founder (along with Francesco Clementi and Bruno Ceccarelli). Animated by an overwhelming driving force, Meldolesi embraced the mission of promoting Italian research in the then-nascent scientific discipline of Cell Biology. He quickly became a leading figure in the field, attracting top-tier students and collaborators. In the 1970s, he continued to focus on the secretory pathway through structural and biochemical studies conducted in his laboratory or through collaborations, focusing primarily on two models: the exocrine pancreas and the pituitary gland. This research produced new evidence for membrane recycling in the process of protein secretion and revealed mechanisms in the formation of secretory granules in endocrine cells.
In the early 1980s, Meldolesi's interests shifted to the regulation of secretion in neurons and neuroendocrine cells, particularly on neurotransmitter release as an extreme specialization of the regulated exo-endocytosis process. Even as a neuroscientist, his vision and approach maintained an emphasis on cellular and molecular mechanisms. He was among the first to appreciate the potential of the new Ca²⁺ imaging techniques developed by Roger Tsien and Tullio Pozzan. This marked the beginning of a fruitful collaboration with Pozzan, who was also a member of our academy, which revealed new aspects of Ca²⁺ dynamics as an intracellular signal, exploring its fine regulatory mechanisms. These studies, and in particular the characterization of a rapidly mobilizable Ca²⁺ pool even in non-muscle cells, represented a major advance in understanding the dynamics of this second messenger.
These fundamental scientific contributions received significant recognition, including the Camillo Golgi Prize, the Feltrinelli Prize, and the Gold Medal of the President of the Republic, as well as election to prestigious scientific institutions such as EMBO and the Academia Europaea, in addition to the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei (2001).
Meldolesi's role in the life sciences, however, was not limited to his research activity and his impact on the fields of cell biology and neurobiology through excellent reviews on various topics. In the late 1980s, he left the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Milan to move to the San Raffaele Institute, where he was tasked with establishing and developing a new research department, DIBIT. In this endeavor, he had the courage to abandon the traditional recruitment criteria of Italian universities, which were based on seniority and loyalty to specific power groups, the so-called "schools." His sole criterion was scientific excellence. In this way, he recruited highly valuable scientists from the most diverse fields of biomedical research, giving life to a cultural environment characterized by a virtuous interweaving of knowledge and creating a department that quickly reached the level of the most prestigious European research institutions.
Among his numerous outstanding initiatives was his contribution to the founding of the Italian Association of Cell Biology (ABCD), the Italian Federation of Life Sciences (FISV), and the Italian Society for Neuroscience (SINS). He served as president of both FISV and SINS. Furthermore, Meldolesi played an essential role in the Italian research funding system, introducing international peer-review mechanisms into the Ministry of Research as a criterion for allocating grants.
Certain aspects of Meldolesi's personality do not emerge from his prestigious curriculum vitae but are well known to those who had the good fortune to interact with him. His sweeping enthusiasm for science and his ability to communicate it gave him a driving force wherever he worked. Meldolesi had a rare ability to present knowledge not as something acquired and static, but as a continuous evolution to which one can contribute. His course in Pharmacology was an unforgettable magnet for those fortunate enough to attend it. His lectures and seminars inspired many young people to choose biomedical research as a field to satisfy their thirst for knowledge and to push past the Scylla and Charybdis of the moment: a great mentor in valuing people and stimulating them to express the best of themselves. Blended with an innate talent for teaching, his constant example of professionalism and dedication made him an accessible and present role model. Throughout his years as director of DIBIT, his door was always open to anyone in need of advice or help. There were no barriers of seniority or position for those who had new ideas to develop or scientific doubts to resolve. A rare combination of talent, commitment, humanity, and enthusiasm makes Jacopo Meldolesi the professor, mentor, leader, or collaborator that every researcher would wish to have at the various stages of their career.