(Apr. 19) Laura studies in one of the most important medicine schools in the world, the Karolinska Institutet. Driven, curious, studious and ready to do sacrifices, Laura Levi, a 27 year old from Naples, is attending her Ph.D at the Karolinska University Hospital in Solna, a few kilometers from Stockholm. “In particular – she says – I study a genotoxin produced by enteric bacteria that live in our gastrointestinal tract, which causes DNA damages.” The Karolinska Institutet is one of the most important centers for research and biomedical disciplines in Sweden. 30% of medical training and 40% of the Swedish national biomedical research are, in fact, conducted at the institute where Laura studies. “I graduated in Industrial Biotechnology from the University Federico II – she says – and I moved to Stockholm in January of 2011 to begin a Ph.D in Molecular Biology at Karolinska Institutet. In Italy it’s almost ipossible to get a scholarship for a PhD so I decided to try abroad.” “The main topic of my PhD – explains Laura – is the link between bacterial toxins and cancer.” On her experience in Stockholm she says: “In the beginning it was definitely hard but it wasn’t easy even when I moved from Naples to Siena after graduation. I think it’s just a language problem. Naples is certainly very different from Stockholm, so does Sweden from Italy but Italians are able to live anywhere in the world. The ‘non-Italian’ – says Laura – always ask me how it is possible that we are able to team up. And I smile because I have not an explanation explanation.” Although Laura is happy with her choice to leave, she’s a little bit homesick : “Family, friends and food are the things I miss the most. I don’t know if I will come back to Italy. I do not exclude it but a change will be necessary. None of us researchers claims to have a high salary or privileges, but we need the necessary conditions to do research. Even here, in the rich Sweden, there are economic problems but we have the opportunity to work and carry out a research project.” (Gil/Peg)
