Team

Dr. Pruss is overseeing strategic development of genetic programs and their clinical applications at the Swiss Center for Genetics. Prior to taking charge over medical strategy and research, for many years Dr. Pruss worked as a general practitioner and clinical researcher. Much of her work was devoted to the immuno-inflammatory processes, different types of B-lymphocytes, pro-inflammatory cytokines, antibody response, role of the immune system in the appearance of atypical cells, activation of autophagy and its influence on the overall human body performance. Dr. Pruss has participated in various international studies involving the use of genetically modified immune lymphocytes in the treatment of tumors, as well as introduction of IPS cells in patients with aggressive forms of cancer. For the last twenty years Dr. Pruss has been heavily involved in studying the processes of premature aging of the body, including aging at the cellular level and identifying correlations between the realization of genetic information and long-lasting health effects.

Dr. Pierre-Alain Menoud is considered to be one of the leading experts in molecular diagnostics in Switzerland. He received PhD in embryology and molecular biology from the University of Fribourg, Switzerland. Before joining private sector, Dr. Menoud spent 20 years on fundamental research. Since 1997 he has been instrumental in launching and developing various laboratory projects and over the last 12 years he has been focusing on molecular microbiology and molecular genetics including cytogenetics.

Dr. Menoud is a member of the Swiss Society of Medical Genetics, European Society of Human Genetics, as well as the FAMH Society (the Association of the Medical Laboratories of Switzerland).

Maria Mjaaland oversees the operational management of the Swiss Center for Genetics, one of the key divisions of the RCLIN Life Sciences Group.
She previously contributed to a research project at the University of Oxford (UK) within the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, focusing on postmenopausal women as part of her MSc in Evidence-Based Healthcare. Maria also holds an MSc in Management from the École des Hautes Études Commerciales (HEC), University of Lausanne.

Maria Mjaaland is a member of the British Society of Genetic Medicine and the European Society of Human Genetics. She is a strong advocate for integrating genetics into personalized care and preventive medicine. As part of this mission, she launched a professional educational platform through the Swiss Center for Genetics and has presented at several internationally recognized conferences. Her professional experience includes work with St Mark’s Hospital & Academic Institute (London, UK) and presentations at major events such as the International Integrative Medicine Conference (Rome, Italy), COSMOPROF (Miami, USA), and AMWC (Monaco), among others.

Mrs. Silacci is a biologist specializing in medical genetics. She has more than 30 years of laboratory experience. Over the last ten years, she has lead genetic departments of the major laboratories in Switzerland. Her expertise spans across the wide domain of medical genetics, with a special focus in:

• Prenatal and Postnatal Cytogenetics:
• Analysis and interpretation of DPNI (Prendia®, Panorama®)
• Cell culture (amniotique fluid, PVC, miscarrage, etc.)
• Caryotype
• CGH array (Genosensor Abbott, Affymetrix, Agilent)
• FISH (chromos. Painting, Aneuvysion, Microdeletions, oncological pathologie)
• Fertility:
• FISH in sperm cells
• FISH in first polar body
• Molecular Genetics:
• QFPCR (Aneusomy of chromosome)
• Fragment analysis
• Molecular Pathology:
• FISH
• PCR (Kras, Braf, EGFR etc.)

Mr. Danfaga upon obtaining his diploma of a technician in biomedical analysis has received additional training as a lab technician at a research center of the University of Lausanne and the University Hospital Center of the Canton of Vaud, as well as the Anatomy Department of the University of Fribourgh, and the Histology Department of the Ophtalmology Hospital of Jules Gonin in Lausanne.

He then worked for many years at one of the major Swiss laboratories, before joining Swiss Center for Genetics.