Silvio is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Pharmacology at UCSD School of Medicine, as well as the Associate Director for Basic Science at Moores Cancer Center.  His research team studies the molecular basis of cancer, with an emphasis on basic mechanisms of signal transduction and cell growth control, and their dysregulation in cancer. He has published over 400 original studies in prestigious journals and organized and co-organized national and international meetings and symposia on signal transduction and oral cancer research.

Silvio received his PhD in pharmacy and biochemistry from the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and trained as a postdoctoral fellow at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI).  He was then Chief of the Oral and Pharyngeal Cancer Branch at the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) until his recruitment to Moores Cancer Center.