​I did my Bachelor's and my Master's in Italy, respectively in Trieste (Faculty of Biology) and in Ancona (Faculty of Marine Biology). During my Bachelor's I started to develop a strong interest in Cnidarian and during the first year of my Master's I realized that what really interested me was the complicated (and still not fully discovered) process of the symbiosis occurring between corals and zooxanthellae. I therefore focused my Master's thesis on this topic, in particular the symbiosis between Exaiptasia pallida and Symbiodinium spp. It was with pleasure that I carried out my Master’s thesis in the Essex University, in the UK. Soon after my graduation I was lucky enough to get a scholarship at the National Museum of Marine Biology and Aquarium, in Taiwan. Both experiences helped me developing a strong passion for this research area.

Wanting to get in touch with different points of view and learn new techniques, I asked Dr. Manuel Aranda to join his lab. After getting a VSRP internship at KAUST I can now consider myself part of this great team.