International Young Investigator Award 2020

Abstract

He receives the award for his paper: Pain-related increase in serotonin transporter gene methylation associates with emotional regulation in 4.5-year-old preterm-born children published in Acta Paediatrica 2020. 1 The paper reports that preterm infants exposed to pain showed increased anger response to emotional stress four years later. This was found to correlate with methylation of a serotonin transporter gene. Dr Provenzi successfully carried out this challenging study design combining research on biological mechanisms with a long-term clinical followup of a high-risk population. Dr Provenzi is a productive and innovative young researcher with a Master of Science degree in Developmental and Clinical Psychology and a PhD in Psychology. He currently works at the IRCCS Mondino Foundation in Pavia, Italy. Dr Provenzi's research focus is parent-infant dyads in at-risk situations, including the epigenetic and behavioural effects of painful and invasive procedures in very preterm infants.Dr Provenzi has studied the effects of stress on the epigenetic regulation of several other target genes, as well as the telemere length, cortisol response and vagal tone. He has also studied interventions 2 and parent-infant dyads. His research has contributed to the research on fathers, who are too often forgotten in dyadic research. In addition to exploring the mechanisms, he has used innovative therapeutic approaches to enhance the quality of the parent-infant interaction in children with neurological problems. He has also published papers on the effects of the immigrant crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic on parent-infant dyads. 3 Dr Provenzi has established wide international networks. These include being a member of the steering committee of the Separation and Closeness Experiences in Neonatal Environment group, which is a multidisciplinary network that is involved in planning, and carrying out, research into this important area of infant development.