Wet Lab
Valentina Bollati is a Full Professor of Occupational Medicine at the University of Milan. For years, she has been investigating how the environment— from the air we breathe to the choices we make every day—communicates with our genes through epigenetic mechanisms.
Her career began between Milan and Los Angeles, where she helped lay the groundwork for a new way of looking at the relationship between environmental exposures and health. She hasn’t stopped since: four ERC grants, over 250 publications, and thousands of citations testify to a curiosity that never rests (and to her firm belief that “methylation never sleeps”).
Her work ranges from air pollutants and heavy metals to positive experiences and lifestyle factors, with particular attention to vulnerable populations such as children, pregnant women, and workers. She is the co-founder of the INES project, which explores the molecular side of well-being and smiles—because yes, even good experiences leave traces in our DNA.
When she is not in the lab or in the classroom, you might find her designing new ways to translate biological complexity into knowledge that benefits public health… or reminding everyone that science is a serious endeavor, but can still be told with lightness.