Computational and Quantitative Biology PhD

My name is Virginia and I graduated in biomedical engineering. During my studies, I deepened the application of principles of physics, chemistry, biology, materials science, and other disciplines related to the design and development of biomedical systems. More precisely, in my bachelor studies, I dealt with the fundamental principles of these disciplines whereas, during my master studies, I had the possibility to focus my attention on the field of robotic and bionic. In particular, for the master’s dissertation, I familiarized myself with the field of Synthetic Biology and Control Theory after discovering the possibility of inducing the desired behavior in a cellular system thanks to the use of control techniques and biotechnological tools. During that period, I had the chance to study the fundamental principles of Synthetic Biology, the dynamic of complex systems, and how to design an intracellular controller. After graduation, I had the opportunity to actively participate in the SINCRO research group, where I completed my master thesis work on a population controller in bacteria. The research experience generated in me a strong interest in cell biology and synthetic genomics, above all if applied to the field of human genetics, because I believe the research in these fields can advance disease prevention and therapeutic approaches, especially those concerning personalized therapies. Thus, in 2021, I started the Ph.D. program of computational and quantitative biology at Federico II in TIGEM where I am acquiring new knowledge about the implementation of artificial genetic networks in living cells.