2011 - 2021 : from undergraduate studies to PhD
Elena Brivio holds a bachelor's degree in medical biotechnologies from the Vita-Salute San Raffaele University in Milan, Italy. During her undergraduate studies, she developed a strong interest in neurobiology, particularly in understanding the molecular causes of rare neurodevelopmental disorders, which led her to continue with a Master’s degree in cellular and molecular biotechnologies. For her Master’s thesis, she conducted a year-long internship at the San Raffaele Rett Research Center, where she worked on a mouse model to study the Rett syndrome, a rare neurodevelopmental disorder. After her traineeship, Elena continued at the San Raffaele Rett Research Center as a young researcher where she strengthened her skills while fostering her interest in pursuing her journey in research.
Motivated to expand her horizons, Elena wanted to continue abroad and specifically in the field of brain pathologies. She looked on the internet and applied to several Ph.D. schools in Europe. In 2017, she joined the department of stress neurobiology and neurogenetics at the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry in Munich, Germany. Her research focused on understanding how stress contributes to psychiatric disorders, investigating the differences between males and females. In 2021, Elena had to face her laboratory’s closure while finishing her Ph.D. She transitioned to the department of brain sciences at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel for one year to complete her Ph.D. under a postdoctoral contract in the same group. She successfully defended her thesis in 2022 from Israel.
2022 - present: postdoctoral experience in France
During her Ph.D., Elena took all the opportunities offered by the Max Planck institute to support young researchers in their career development. She joined webinars, workshops and courses to get information on her opportunities and understand the professional environment.
After her defense, Elena stayed in Israel and looked for jobs and postdocs. She found a laboratory in Strasbourg, France that aligned with her interests and obtained a postdoctoral position at the Institute of Genetics and Molecular and Cellular Biology (IGBMC) in Juliette Godin’s laboratory where they study neurodevelopmental processes. Since May 2023, she is a postdoctoral researcher under a FRM fellowship (Medical Research Foundation). The project she is working on, funded by an ERC (European Research Council) Consolidator Grant for five years, investigates the mechanisms behind the development of the brain and specifically the regulatory roles of tRNAs (transfer RNAs) in these processes, using mouse models.
As a FMR fellow, she has travel grants which gives her the opportunity to participate to conferences important to advance her research but often expensive such as the recent two-week stay at the tRNA Conference in Japan she took part in.
In parallel, she obtained a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action (MSCA) Posdoctoral Fellowship, which start in February 2025 for 2 years. The combination of the two fellowships (FRM and MSCA) will allow her to continue her research in the Godin lab for a little more of 4 years and hopefully bring the project to completion.
Future career goals
Elena has always been interested in science communication and sharing science. During her PhD, she was for example an active member of the IMPRS-TP PsyComm group, where she co-authored a booklet aimed at raise awareness among young people on mental health and reducing stigma around mental illness. The project covered topics like brain anatomy, mental illness mechanisms, and the importance of mental health awareness. She also participated in public science outreach events with the organisation 15x4 Munich, where she delivered several 15-minute talks on topics related to her field of research to the general public.
Furthermore, she also believes in open science and sharing knowledge between scientists. For example she is a volunteer reviewer for the STAR Protocols, an open access peer-reviewed protocol journal from Cell Press that publishes step-by-step experimental and computational protocols from all areas of life, health, earth, and physical sciences.
She aspires to continue making science accessible to the society in general and wants to be involved in promoting researchers and research results. She would like to contribute to the European society by acting as a consultant or expert for policymaking or grant proposals within higher institutions.
Advice for researchers pursuing their careers
“If you have an opportunity you have never planned, be open to take it” because “opportunities will bring more opportunities”.
Elena never wanted to go to Israel but when the opportunity came, she had no reason to reject it. Finally, Israel was a great experience for her research work and ultimately led her to Strasbourg.
“Look for information on people online as much as possible before committing to somebody. A good environment is as important as a good project: a bad project can be saved by good colleagues, but bad colleagues can ruin a good project”
Online resources can help you know better what kind of people your future colleagues are and help you make your decision if they are the right fit for you.
“Proposals are mindgames:you need to understand what they are looking for on the other side and convince them that you align with their expectations”
The first step in writing a proposal is to enter the mind of the funder and understand what they are interested in.