Marco Pravetoni, PhD

The Pravetoni group focuses on development and translation of medical interventions against substance use disorders (SUD) and other chemical and biological threats. Current efforts are: 1) vaccines, monoclonal antibodies (mAb), and small molecules to treat or prevent SUD, opioid use disorders (OUD) and overdose, 2) mechanisms and biomarkers underlying or predicting efficacy of immunotherapeutics and medications in pre-clinical models of SUD and OUD patients, 3) novel strategies to enhance vaccine or medication efficacy, including immunomodulators, small molecules, adjuvants, nanoparticles, polymers and other delivery platforms, 4) Vaccines, mAb, and clinical biomarkers against infectious diseases (e.g., Pseudomonas aeruginosa and novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2), 5) biosensors for field detection or diagnosis.

Education

PhD in Pharmacology, University of Minnesota, 2008

Department Affiliations

Scholarly Expertise

  • Vaccines, monoclonal antibodies, immunology, pharmacology, chemical threats, immunoprofiling

Recent Publications

Monoclonal Antibodies Engineered with Fc Region Mutations to Extend Protection against Fentanyl Toxicity.
(2024 Jul 17)
J Immunol
Khaimraj A, Baehr CA, Hicks D, Raleigh MD, Pravetoni M

ACE2 decoy Fc-fusions and bi-specific killer engager (BiKEs) require Fc engagement for in vivo efficacy against SARS-CoV-2.
(2024 Jun 21)
bioRxiv
Dick JK, Hicks D, Krishna VD, Sangala JA, Zandstra BT, Baehr C, Verbeek JS, Cragg MS, Cheeran MC, Pravetoni M, Hart GT

Identification and biophysical characterization of a novel domain-swapped camelid antibody specific for fentanyl.
(2024 Jun 28)
J Biol Chem 300(8): 107502
Gallant JP, Hicks D, Shi K, Moeller NH, Hoppe B, Lake EW, Baehr C, Pravetoni M, Aihara H, LeBeau AM

Antibody-mediated cellular responses are dysregulated in Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C).
(2024 Apr 18)
bioRxiv
Dick JK, Sangala JA, Krishna VD, Khaimraj A, Hamel L, Erickson SM, Hicks D, Soigner Y, Covill LE, Johnson A, Ehrhardt MJ, Ernste K, Brodin P, Koup RA, Khaitan A, Baehr C, Thielen BK, Henzler CM, Skipper C, Miller JS, Bryceson YT, Wu J, John CC, Panoskaltsis-Mortari A, Orioles A, Steiner ME, Cheeran MC, Pravetoni M, Hart GT

The fentanyl-specific antibody FenAb024 can shield against carfentanil effects.
(2024 May 15)
Toxicol Lett 396(): 1-10
Urban K, Gkeka A, Chandra M, Greiner D, Pollich S, Ruf S, Kelemen Y, Sundermann T, Pravetoni M, Baehr C, Stebbins CE, Papavasiliou FN, Verdi JP

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