Today, at the Sicilian Regional Assembly, the event promoted by the Franco and Piera Cutino Foundation titled “The liquidation of the funds of the Mediterranean Institute of Hematology (IME) Foundation: an example of transparency and effectiveness in the management of public funds for scientific research” took place. Paolo Aquilanti, President of the Ri.MED Foundation, also took part in the event.
The initiative provided an important opportunity for institutional discussion aimed at publicly presenting the process of liquidating the assets of the now-defunct IME Foundation and their redistribution in support of three nationally relevant research institutions: the Franco and Piera Cutino Foundation, the Ri.MED Foundation, and the Pasteur Institute Italy. A total of €621,000 was allocated to the Ri.MED Foundation to support training programs and scientific research activities.
“I would like to thank the Cutino Foundation for promoting this initiative, which represents a virtuous example of transparency and collaboration between public and private institutions engaged in scientific research,” said Paolo Aquilanti, President of the Ri.MED Foundation. “We are proud to invest the funds allocated to us in training and research, because this also means investing in the well-being of the territory: the scientific and professional growth of young people is the key to a more competitive and sustainable future.”
In 2025 alone, also thanks to IME resources, Ri.MED hosted 33 fellows, 13 PhD students, and 22 trainees, involving them in its research programs ranging from bioengineering to regenerative medicine, from structural biology to medicinal chemistry. This research generates tangible impact, with dozens of patents included in the Foundation’s portfolio.
This morning, representatives of the Cutino Foundation, together with those of IRCCS ISMETT, visited the construction site of the new Ri.MED Research Center in Carini, which will host advanced laboratories and spaces dedicated to translational research and technology transfer. The goal is to work together to develop new diagnostic and therapeutic solutions in the field of hematological diseases—and beyond—within a framework of full transparency and responsibility in the management of public resources.
The President of the Cutino Foundation, Dr. Maggio, emphasized: “I am very pleased to have visited the emerging research laboratories of the Ri.MED Foundation, which in the near future will add significant value to biomedical research in the field of precision medicine.”