Rate My Professor Daniela Salvatori

Daniela Salvatori is Professor of Comparative Anatomy and Physiology in the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at Utrecht University since August 2019. She heads the Department of Anatomy and Physiology and chairs the Utrecht Transition to Animal-free Innovation (TPI) initiative since November 2019. From September 2020 to 2023, she directed the Education for Professionals programme in the Veterinary Faculty. Previously, she worked at Leiden University Medical Center as designated veterinarian and in pathology research. She served as lecturer in pathology at the Royal Veterinary College, London from 2004 to 2005, and earlier as senior scientist at Crucell. Salvatori obtained her PhD in 2004 studying the epidemiology and pathogenesis of ovine pulmonary adenocarcinoma, and holds a veterinary degree from Italy.

Salvatori leads the Centre of Excellence for Plastination and Virtual Reality, developing interactive holographic models ('Avatar Zoo') for anatomy education and clinical skills training. Her research specializations include malignancy and safety of human and animal stem cells, tumorigenesis mechanisms, in vitro models for human and animal diseases, and animal-free innovations. Key publications encompass 'Yolk Sac Elements in Tumors Derived from Pluripotent Stem Cells: Borrowing Knowledge from Human Germ Cell Tumors' (2025, International Journal of Molecular Sciences), 'Chromosome-specific aberrations, rather than general aneuploidy, may drive mouse embryonic stem cell-derived teratoma metastasis' (2025, Stem Cell Research and Therapy), 'Developing a global education hub for animal-free innovation' (2025, Altex), and 'Safety Issues Related to Pluripotent Stem Cell-Based Therapies: Tumour Risk' (2024, Springer). In 2024, she was appointed a member of the Royal Dutch Society of Sciences and Humanities (KHMW). She has featured in media on the Centre for Animal-Free Biomedical Translation and transition to animal-free methods.