Mini-Profiles of STEM Role Models 11

Today’s mini-profile is of PhD Researcher in Danny Incarnato’s group at the University of Groningen, specialising in RNA structure, Ilaria Manfredonia, whose profile really highlights the importance of having role models and being able to experience hands-on science. I hope you enjoy it and the rest of the series!

Job title:

PhD candidate

Subject area:

Molecular Genetics - RNA structure

How did you get into science?:

I guess it’s always been there. When I was learning how to speak, my favourite thing to say was “Rita Levi-Montalcini”. I was curious about science in general and I fell in love with Genetics when I first heard about Gregor Mendel from my mom (she’s a science teacher). The coup de grace arrived when I was 14 and I did my first DNA footprinting at the “Città della Scienza” in Naples.

Where else have you worked/studied?

I started with a Bachelor’s in Biotechnology at the University of Siena, with an internship in the Virology research unit of the “Policlinico Santa Maria alle Scotte”. Then I moved to Turin for a Master’s in Molecular Biotechnology and during the whole period of my Master’s I also started to understand the meaning of a “lab life” at the “Italian Institute for Genomic Medicine” (IIGM). The fun and challenging opportunity to (try to) decipher RNA folding dynamics is what brought me to Groningen in 2019.

What are your hobbies/what do you do for fun?

I like to think of myself as a “detail hunter”. I enjoy the charm of hidden particulars, like songs written with intriguing metrics, unusual perspectives in pictures, the shades in the personality of both real and fantastic characters but also the feeling of breaking the dry surface of sand on the beach after it rained.