In conversation with ALESSANDRO VAI
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Alessandro Vai
Marcolin is once again supporting the AIRC Foundation this year by funding a training scholarship for a young researcher. Let’s meet this year's winner, Alessandro Vai, a researcher at the European Institute of Oncology.
At IEO you are working on research about the role of some particular proteins: how will your study help fight cancer?
«The proteins I am dealing with are called “histones”, which are very important in controlling various cellular processes. It has been seen that these particular proteins also play a considerable role in cancer initiation because the genes they regulate are aberrant, so by studying histones it is possible to achieve a deeper understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying cancer».
When and why did you realize you wanted to pursue a research career in this particular field?
«I realized I wanted to be a researcher in high school, where I had the opportunity to spend a short time in a research laboratory: there I fell in love with the passion that researchers put into their work, so I decided to pursue this path. I still enjoy research, because it allows me to take on new challenges in an attempt to solve questions that are currently unanswered».
Thanks to AIRC, 5000 researchers are working to fight cancer this year: what are the new challenges ahead?
«In my opinion, the greatest challenge in research today concerns personalized medicine because it has been seen that patients respond differently to therapies. And today we have access to a lot of information, such as that from DNA sequencing, that can help define tailored treatments for patients, thus improving the effectiveness of therapy».
