Professor Dragan Primorac, M.D., Ph.D., is a pediatrician, geneticist, and forensic expert witness. He was the first to receive the title “Global Penn State University Ambassador” since the university’s founding in 1855. According to Elsevier BV, one of the world’s leading academic publishers, and based on standardized citation metrics developed by a team at Stanford University, Prof. Primorac has been ranked among the top 2% of scientists globally for both career-long and single-year scientific impact for the past four years.

Professor Dragan Primorac is a faculty member at the Eberly College of Science, The Pennsylvania State University, and the University of New Haven in the United States. He also holds professorships at the Medical Schools in Split, Rijeka, and Osijek in Croatia, as well as at SANA Medical School in Germany. In October 2016, he was appointed a Visiting Professor at the College of Medicine and Forensics, Xi’an Jiaotong University in the People’s Republic of China. In March 2021, he became the first European to be honored with the “Professor Emeritus” title at the National Forensic Science University of India.

Professor Primorac has authored nearly 300 scientific papers, abstracts, and 30 books or book chapters. He has been an invited speaker at over 150 international conferences. His research has been published in some of the world’s most prestigious scientific journals, including Science and Nature. According to Google Scholar, his work has been cited nearly 10,600 times. He has mentored 16 Ph.D. candidates and two master’s students throughout their academic journeys.

In the early 1990s, Professor Dragan Primorac, in collaboration with colleagues from the United States, pioneered the use of DNA analysis for the identification of skeletal human remains recovered from mass graves. During the same period, his research group at the University of Connecticut (UConn) made significant contributions to molecular genetics. They described the molecular mechanism of Osteogenesis Imperfecta Type I, identifying splicing mutations at the donor (5′) site as the cause. Additionally, they uncovered the molecular basis of nanomelia, a heritable chondrodystrophy in chickens, linked to aggrecan mRNA containing a premature termination codon (PTC).

In 2000, as part of an international consortium, Prof. Primorac co-authored a landmark paper in Science that provided a genetic perspective on human history in Europe, analyzing 22 binary markers on the non-recombining Y chromosome. Later, in 2017, he contributed to a Nature publication that described the early and largely extinct expansion of anatomically modern humans (AMHs) out of Africa, based on genomic analysis of 148 human populations worldwide.

In 2017, Professor Dragan Primorac and his research team were the first to demonstrate the molecular impact of micro-fragmented adipose tissue containing mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) on hyaline cartilage regeneration, using delayed gadolinium-enhanced MRI of cartilage (dGEMRIC). Since 2019, he has been actively engaged in whole genome sequencing studies, particularly identifying novel, potentially fatal genetic markers.

In 2021, in collaboration with U.S. colleagues, he introduced a new model for preventing sudden cardiac death to the Croatian Football Federation, involving genetic analysis of 294 genes associated with inherited cardiac conditions. That same year, he was among the first scientists to treat COVID-19 patients with ARDS using in vitro-expanded MSCs successfully.

In 2023, Prof. Primorac and his team pioneered a novel approach to treating rectovaginal fistulas, combining a modified Martius flap with autologous micro-fragmented adipose tissue containing MSCs.

As one of the pioneers in the field, Professor Dragan Primorac actively applies the personalized medicine paradigm—including pharmacogenomics, predictive genetic testing, and mesenchymal stem cell therapies—in routine clinical practice. He has led numerous scientific projects, including EU FP7, S3 (Smart Specialization Strategy), and IRI 2 under the EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation.

In 1997, Prof. Primorac co-founded the International Society of Applied Biological Sciences (ISABS). To date, more than 6,500 scientists and 700 invited speakers—including ten Nobel laureates—from 75 countries have participated in ISABS conferences, held biennially in Croatia in partnership with the Mayo Clinic. He also founded the “Nobel Spirit” event, held during ISABS conferences, which fosters public dialogue with Nobel laureates on the role of science in addressing global health challenges, regional issues such as brain drain and demographic decline, and broader cultural and societal transformations.

Prof. Primorac currently serves on the Executive Committee of the International Consortium for Personalized Medicine (IC PerMed), established by the European Commission. He is also the President of the International Regenerative Medicine Experts Society (IARMES), the Croatian Society for Human Genetics, and the Croatian Society for (Precision) Personalized Medicine. Additionally, he is a member of the Croatian Prime Minister’s Scientific Committee.

In 2011, Professor Dragan Primorac founded St. Catherine Specialty Hospital, recognized as a European center of excellence in personalized medicine. The hospital serves as an official medical institution for the World Taekwondo Federation, the Croatian Olympic Committee, and the Croatian Football Federation, and functions as a teaching hospital for four medical schools. Since its inception, Prof. Primorac has served as Chairman of the hospital’s Board of Trustees.

In addition, in 2009, he co-founded the Department of Forensic Sciences at the University of Split, Croatia. In 2015, he played a key role in establishing the Regiomed Medical School in Bavaria, Germany.

Earlier in his career, Prof. Primorac gained extensive international experience at several leading institutions in the United States, including: The University of Connecticut, Health Center, Department of Pediatrics, Farmington, Connecticut; The University Hospital St. Christopher’s, Allegheny University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; The Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (AFIP), Rockville, Maryland; The Analytical Genetic Testing Center, Inc., Denver, Colorado; Roche Molecular Systems, Alameda, California, and Connecticut State Police Forensic Science Laboratory, Meriden, Connecticut, all in the United States.

Professor Dragan Primorac has received 21 domestic and international awards in recognition of his scientific, educational, and societal contributions. In 2015, he was awarded the Order of the Croatian Star with the Effigy of Ruđer Bošković for his extraordinary achievements in science, along with the State Science Award, the highest national recognition granted by the Parliament of the Republic of Croatia, for his outstanding contributions to biomedical science.

In 2018, he received the Order of Ante Starčević for his exceptional achievements in science, education, and politics, and for his contributions to the development of the Republic of Croatia. In 2019, the American Academy of Forensic Sciences honored him with the Mary E. Cowan Outstanding Service Award for his excellence, international recognition, and significant contributions to the advancement of forensic science worldwide.

Prof. Primorac is currently an honorary citizen of five cities. In 2022, he was awarded an honorary doctorateby the University of Mostar, followed by another in 2023 from the University of Osijek. Since November 2023, the Henry Lee Museum of Forensic Investigation in Rugao, China—the world’s largest forensic museum—has recognized Prof. Primorac as one of the most influential forensic scientists globally.

Professor Dragan Primorac’s work has been widely covered by prominent international and regional media outlets, including The New York Times, USA Today, Chicago Tribune, Hartford Courant, Wall Street International, Fair Observer, JAMA, The Lancet, Science, NBC, Channel 8 (Connecticut), Večer (Slovenia), Kleine Zeitung and Die Presse (Austria), Haaretz (Israel), and nearly all major Croatian and regional news platforms.

In 2022, American author Ari Mittleman dedicated an entire chapter of his book, Path of the Righteous: Stories of Heroism, Humanity, and Hope, to Prof. Primorac’s humanitarian and forensic work. The book highlights his leadership in identifying war victims from mass graves in the former Yugoslavia using advanced DNA technology.

In 2023, American-Chinese author Xiaping Jiang featured Prof. Primorac’s forensic contributions in her book Gunshot in Croatia, focusing on his role in the identification of war victims in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina during the early 1990s.

From 2003 to 2009, Prof. Primorac served as Minister of Science, Education, and Sports of the Republic of Croatia. According to an International Republican Institute survey conducted on October 1, 2007, he was rated the most successful minister in the Croatian Government, with a 31% approval rating. His efforts in reforming the Croatian education system were recognized internationally—Newsweek magazine ranked Croatia’s education system 22nd in the world in its August 16, 2010, issue, ahead of 12 G20 countries.

Outside of science and politics, Prof. Primorac was also a cadet taekwondo vice-champion of the former Yugoslavia. On November 17, 1987, he founded the first WTF Taekwondo club in Southern Croatia, where he continues to serve as club president. In 2004, he received the Silver Plaque from the European Olympic Committee for his contributions to sports development.

In 2015, Professor Dragan Primorac was inducted into the Taekwondo Hall of Fame in the United States. In 2019, the President of the European Taekwondo Federation, Mr. Sakis Pragalos, awarded him the honorary 7th Dan black belt, followed by the WTE Gold Medal 2020. In October 2020, he was elected to the Council of the Croatian Olympic Committee.

From 2019 to 2021, he served as President of the Medical Committee of the Croatian Football Federation (CFF) and currently acts as Senior Advisor to the President of the CFF. On November 27, 2021, he was elected as a member of the European Olympic Committee Medical and Anti-Doping Commission. In 2022, he was elected Vice President of the Croatian Taekwondo Federation. Most recently, in 2024, he was elected President of the Medical Committee of the Croatian Volleyball Federation (CVF) and became a member of the Medical Committee of the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB).