Congratulations to Rosa Saurino for winning a scholarship for a SEMM-funded Ph.D. program by Mitocon
Nov 23, 2023
Today, Rosa will be in Rome with Alessia Indrieri for an official meeting with the Association, President Marco Marmotta, and the past President Piero Santantonio, who strongly advocated for this scholarship.
She decided to participate in the Ph.D. competition at the European School of Molecular Medicine (SEMM) because she was strongly motivated to continue her path in the field of scientific research. Moreover, the prospect of continuing to contribute to the development of a new therapeutic strategy for ADOA, thanks to the Mitocon Ph.D. scholarship, further fueled her desire to participate in this competition. SEMM offers a very interesting and stimulating study program, especially due to its international nature. Therefore, undertaking this Ph.D. represents a significant opportunity for growth, both professionally and personally.
More about Alessia Indrieri's lab here.
How did the interest in mitochondrial diseases arise?
“I was asked to be involved in a research project on mitochondrial diseases during my master's thesis” Rosa says. “In particular, this project aimed to test the effect of modulating small RNAs (microRNAs) as a possible therapeutic approach for treating Autosomal Dominant Optic Atrophy (ADOA), a disease caused by the malfunction of a mitochondrial protein. ADOA is a mitochondrial optic neuropathy that typically causes bilateral vision loss in the first decade of life. From the beginning, I became deeply passionate about the ADOA project, fascinated by the possibility of developing a new therapy for this previously incurable disease. Therefore, the prospect of continuing to contribute to the development of this project motivated me” Rosa continues.She decided to participate in the Ph.D. competition at the European School of Molecular Medicine (SEMM) because she was strongly motivated to continue her path in the field of scientific research. Moreover, the prospect of continuing to contribute to the development of a new therapeutic strategy for ADOA, thanks to the Mitocon Ph.D. scholarship, further fueled her desire to participate in this competition. SEMM offers a very interesting and stimulating study program, especially due to its international nature. Therefore, undertaking this Ph.D. represents a significant opportunity for growth, both professionally and personally.
When do the Ph.D. courses start?
The Ph.D. started October 1st. The courses for the first year will begin in January. At TIGEM, Ph.D. students have the opportunity to participate weekly in scientific seminars held by international guests and data clubs, during which other Ph.D. students, post-docs, and principal investigators present their latest findings.More about Alessia Indrieri's lab here.