NGF La molecola della vita / NGF The Molecule of Life, by Rita Levi-Montalcini/Elena Cattaneo

Rita Levi-Montalcini’s discovery of NGF (nerve growth factor) was a breakthrough in the field of neuroscience and biology... as crucial a moment as the discovery of the first neurotransmitter or the first hormone. Indeed, in 1986 the Turin-based scientist was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine, together with the American Biochemist Stanley Cohen.

In this book Rita Levi-Montalcini presents and explains the dynamics involving NGF, a protein which plays a leading role in the creation and development of the vertebrate nervous system. Its discovery was a scientific step of fundamental importance for the treatment of nervous diseases, initiating a line of research that still owes a huge debt to the intuition of Rita Levi-Montalcini. NGF. The Molecule of Life is introduced and commented by the Italian biologist and Lifetime Senator Elena Cataneo. It tells both the story of a vital protein in the growth of human beings and one of the most thrilling chapters in the history of Italian science.