Rita Levi-Montalcini and her twin sister Paola were born April 22, 1909, to a Jewish family in the northern city of Turin. Her parents were Adamo Levi, an electrical engineer and mathematician, and Adele Montalcini, a painter.Levi-Montalcini, a biologist who conducted underground research in defiance of Fascist persecution and went on to win a Nobel Prize for helping unlock the mysteries of the cell, recently died at her home in Rome. She was 103 and had worked well into her final years.
Rome Mayor Gianni Alemanno called her death a great loss “for all of humanity.” He praised her as someone who represented “civic conscience, culture and the spirit of research of our time.
Rome Mayor Gianni Alemanno called her death a great loss “for all of humanity.” He praised her as someone who represented “civic conscience, culture and the spirit of research of our time.
Italy’s so-called “Lady of the Cells,” a Jew who lived through anti-Semitic discrimination and the Nazi invasion of Italy, became one of her country’s leading scientists. During World War Two, the Allies’ bombing of Turin forced her to flee to the countryside where she established a mini-laboratory. She fled to Florence after the German invasion of Italy and lived in hiding there for a while, later working as a doctor in a refugee camp.
During her research at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, she discovered the nerve growth factor (NGF), the first substance known to regulate the growth of cells. She showed that when tumors from mice were transplanted to chicken embryos they induced rapid growth of the embryonic nervous system. She concluded that the tumor released a nerve growth-promoting factor that affected certain types of cells. Her research helped in the treatment of spinal cord injuries and has increased understanding of cardiovascular diseases, as well as Alzheimer’s.
Her research contributed to a better understanding of many conditions, including tumors, developmental malformations, and senile dementia. It also led to Stanley Cohen’s discovery of another substance, epidermal growth factor (EGF), which stimulates the proliferation of epithelial cells. The two shared the Nobel Prize for medicine in 1986.
After retiring in the late 1970s, she continued to work as a guest professor and wrote several books to popularize science. She created the Levi-Montalcini Foundation to grant scholarships and promote educational programs worldwide, particularly for women in Africa.
After retiring in the late 1970s, she continued to work as a guest professor and wrote several books to popularize science. She created the Levi-Montalcini Foundation to grant scholarships and promote educational programs worldwide, particularly for women in Africa.
Levi-Montalcini never married and had no children, fearing such ties would undercut her independence. “I never had any hesitation or regrets in this sense,” she said. ”My life has been enriched by excellent human relations, work and interests. I have never felt lonely.”
An elegant presence, confident and passionate, she was a sought-after speaker until late in life. “At 100, I have a mind that is superior — thanks to experience — more than when I was 20,” she said in 2009.
“It is imperfection — not perfection — that is the end result of the program written into that formidably complex engine that is the human brain,” Dr. Levi-Montalcini wrote in her autobiography, “and of the influences exerted upon us by the environment and whoever takes care of us during the long years of our physical, psychological and intellectual development.”
Israel has suffered at the hands of her enemies, but she continues to survive and flourish, providing the world with professionals who are leaders in all fields of research and development. As we pray for the peace and protection of Jerusalem Psalm 122:6, let us pray with thanksgiving for the special gifts and skills with which He has endowed His chosen people and for the contributions that they have made that make all of lives better.
To read more about Rite Levi-Montalcini please see articles in Wikipedia, New Zealand Herald, BBC, Reuters, New York Times.
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