Petra Kleinbongard studied Biology and received her PhD from Ruhr University Bochum (Germany). During her postdoctoral period at the Cardiology Laboratory of the Clinic for Cardiology, Angiology and Pneumology at the University Hospital Düsseldorf and Aachen, she focused on the importance of hematogenic NO synthesis for vascular homeostasis. After moving to the Institute of Pathophysiology at the University Hospital of Essen, her research activities were directed towards a better understanding and characterization of the humoral factors that may be involved in the so-called "no-reflow phenomenon". Currently, she is Professor and Deputy Managing Director of the Institute of Pathophysiology at University of Duisburg-Essen (Germany). Her current research interests focus on cardioprotection by ischemic and pharmacological conditioning, with the goal of better understanding the underlying signal transduction of conditioning, improving existing patient-specific applications to protect the heart, and establishing novel therapies. Dr. Kleinbongard is addressing this aim by combining large animal models with bioassays on cardiomyocyte and vascular function, as well as protein biochemical methods. She is active in the editorial board of Basic Research in Cardiology and the International Journal of Cardiology and serves as Associate Editor for AJP-Heart and Circulatory Physiology and the Journal of Cardiovascular Pharmacology and Therapeutics. Her current h-factor is 52.

Luca Liberale is an Associate Professor of Internal Medicine and Consultant Internist at San Martino University Hospital, University of Genoa, Italy. His research focuses on the role of inflammation in cardiovascular disease, with particular interest in atherosclerosis, vascular aging, thrombosis, and cardio-metabolic dysfunction. After obtaining his MD (2012) and specialization in Internal Medicine (2018) from the University of Genoa, he completed a PhD (2021) and conducted research at the Center for Molecular Cardiology, University of Zurich, working on aging, arterial thrombosis, and stroke. He has authored more than 200 peer-reviewed publications and is actively involved in international cardiovascular research networks, including leadership roles within European scientific societies and collaborative initiatives investigating vascular dysfunction and metabolic disease.