Sezione di Scienze Ambientali
Via Mattioli, 4 – 53100 Siena
Email: fossi@unisi.it
Maria Cristina Fossi is a globally recognized ecologist and ecotoxicologist renowned for her pioneering work in marine ecotoxicology. For three decades, she has advanced methodologies to study the impact of toxic substances on marine ecosystems, focusing on environmental contaminants and marine life. A Full Professor of Ecology and Ecotoxicology at the University of Siena and Scientific Director of the Plastic Busters Laboratory, she has authored numerous scientific publications. Her innovative research investigates the effects of various pollutants, including microplastics and emerging chemicals, on marine organisms and food chains, raising awareness and promoting conservation solutions. Key career milestones include developing the biomarker approach, pioneering non-destructive techniques for endangered species, becoming a world authority on ecotoxicological risk in cetaceans and contributing to the IWC against whaling. She also published early studies on endocrine disruptors in Mediterranean predators and provided the first global evidence of microplastic effects on baleen whales.
Since 2013, she leads the Plastic Busters initiative, uniting Mediterranean shores against marine litter, and since 2022,
she innovates diagnostic methods for emerging contaminants' effects on iconic marine species.
1. Development of the biomarker approach in terrestrial and marine ecotoxicology.
2. Development of Non-Destructive Biomarker techniques for studying endangered species in a non-lethal way.
3. Assessment of ecotoxicological risk in cetaceans, including endocrine disruptors effects.
4. Development of new strategy to monitoring and mitigating the impact of Marine litter in the Mediterranean Sea.
5. Development of diagnostic methodologies to detect the effects of emerging contaminants and multiple stressors on iconic marine species (cetaceans, birds, and turtles).