For Marco Ghilotti, PhD’26, the path from undergraduate student to PhD graduate never required leaving Temple. What began as a knock on a professor’s door grew into a decade-long scientific journey rooted in mentorship, discovery and community.
Ghilotti first arrived at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine (Katz) as a neuroscience undergraduate, drawn to the university’s strong research environment and the opportunities it offered students eager to explore science firsthand. During those early years, he found his way to the lab of Ellen M. Unterwald, PhD, Chair and Professor in the Department of Neural Sciences and Director and Professor in Katz’s Center for Substance Abuse Research, a connection that would shape the course of his academic career.
“At the time, I had zero lab experience,” Ghilotti said. “But I was curious and willing to learn.”
Unterwald welcomed him into the lab, beginning a mentorship that would continue through his undergraduate education and into his doctoral training. Over the years, Ghilotti immersed himself in preclinical addiction research while developing not only as a scientist, but also as a mentor and educator within the broader Katz community.
Beyond the lab, he became involved in volunteer and outreach efforts throughout Philadelphia, helping introduce younger students to science through hands-on learning experiences and classroom engagement.
Now, as he prepares to begin a postdoctoral fellowship at the Behavioral Pharmacology Research Unit at Johns Hopkins University, Ghilotti is looking forward to translating years of preclinical research into clinical and human-focused work. Long term, he hopes his research will help reshape how addiction is understood and treated.
Below, Ghilotti reflects on his time at Katz and looks ahead to what comes next.
You did your undergraduate studies at Temple and stayed for your PhD at Katz. What made you want to continue your journey here?
What kept me at Katz was the research and the community, especially in the Center for Substance Abuse Research. I have worked with my PI, Dr. Unterwald, since my time as an undergraduate, so I knew that if I stayed, I would be able to conduct highly novel research in the addiction field and work in an environment where I could be creative and explore different avenues.
How have you been shaped as a scientist during your time at Temple?
Ghilotti: Dr. Unterwald has shaped me as a scientist. Ever since I knocked on her door as an undergraduate with zero lab experience, she has taken me under her wing and shaped me into the person and scientist I am today.
Katz also provided me with many opportunities to get involved in the Philadelphia community, volunteer and teach middle and high school students about science and what it means to be a scientist today.
What’s a moment or memory from your time at Katz that you’ll carry with you?
Ghilotti: I will always carry with me my interactions with younger students who didn’t know much about science or what a career in science even looks like. Doing hands-on scientific experiments with young students can have such a lasting impact that it can change their life trajectory forever. Being involved in the early stages of someone’s life is so rewarding.
You’re heading to Johns Hopkins for your postdoctoral fellowship. What are you most excited about?
I am very excited to fully dive into clinical and human research and translate my preclinical knowledge into practice. Having the opportunity to learn in the environment that the Behavioral Pharmacology Research Unit at Johns Hopkins provides will be instrumental in creating a launchpad for my career goals moving forward.
When you look further down the road, what kind of impact do you hope your work will have?
I hope that my science will begin to shift gears in how people think about and treat addiction. Having a precision medicine approach will be instrumental in implementing novel therapies to tackle different substance use disorders.