riccardo-polosa.jpg

Riccardo Polosa

CoEHAR Founder

Riccardo Polosa is full professor of Internal Medicine at the Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine of the University of Catania, and an Italian Respiratory Physician, Clinical Immunologist, Allergist and Rheumatologist.

He is actively involved in smoking prevention and cessation. Indeed, he established the first Sicilian center for smoking cessation at the University of Catania in 2002.

In 2003, he founded the Italian Antismoking Association (LIAF), which he directed for 5 years.

In 2018, Polosa established, together with 38 academics, the Center of Excellence for the acceleration of HArm Reduction (CoEHAR) at the University of Catania, a unique multi-disciplinary research centre with the mission to reduce health impacts and deaths from smoking, locally and globally.

In the area of in tobacco control and prevention, he has been the most prolific author in the field of electronic cigarettes – according to a paper published in BMC Public Health. He is the lead author of ECLAT- first randomized controlled trial in the world about effectiveness and tolerability of e-cigarettes.

giovanni-li-volti-quadrato

Giovanni Li Volti​

CoEHAR Director​

Giovanni Li Volti is full professor of Biochemistry at the Department of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences of the University of Catania.

Soon after the graduation in Medicine and Surgery at the University of Catania in 2000, he attended the Department of Pharmacology at the New York Medical College, and in 2005 he obtained the title of PhD in Pediatric Sciences at the University of Catania.

In 2006, he was research fellow at the Department of Anatomy of the University of Brescia.

Prof. Li Volti has received numerous national and international awards for his research activity:

September 2002: Aventis Pharma New Investigator Award for U.S. Fellow
November 2002: Toscano-Scuderi Award (University of Catania, Italy)
August 2004: Young Investigator Travel Award at the European Society of Neurochemistry
September 2009: Travel award at the International Heme Oxygenase meeting, Miami (FL)
June 2010: Young Scientist Award FEBS meeting.

Department of

Clinical and Experimental Medicine

Department of

Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences

Department of

Chemical Sciences

Other

Departments

Administration

The Consortium

CoEHAR includes the local “Center for Tobacco Prevention and treatment” and a Clinical Research Organization, with their laboratories of microbiology and molecular biology.

CoEHAR actions on advocacy, training and education, awareness campaigns, are supported by the Italian Anti-Smoking League, LIAF (Lega Italiana Anti Fumo) and ECLAT, a spin-off of the University of Catania.

Quitting smoking is a priority. Smoking damages your life and that of those around you. If you are unable to quit smoking on your own, ask for help from a smoking cessation expert who will be able to advise you on the most appropriate and least harmful solution. Remember, you die from tar and not from nicotine.
Riccardo Polosa
CoEHAR Founder

Our

Partners