Riunione Nazionale “A. Castellani”
dei Dottorandi di Ricerca in Discipline Biochimiche
(National meeting "A. Castellani" of PhD Students in Biochemical Sciences)
The first meeting of the PhD students in biochemical sciences took place beginning on June 5th, 1988, organized by the late Professor Alessandro Castellani, then Rector of the University of Pavia, and promoted by the Italian Society of Biochemistry (SIB) with the collaboration of the biochemists from Pavia.
As stated in the title, the target for this event were the students attending one of the national PhD programs in biochemistry and related disciplines.
1988. First edition of the Brallo Meeting. The 1st Doctorate cycle for all disciplines started in Italy in 1985, 40 years ago!
Since then, the meeting has always been held yearly in Brallo di Pregola, a small village on the hills near Pavia. During this long stretch of time, “the Brallo meeting” increasingly asserted itself as an interesting initiative, highly appreciated by the elderly biochemists and, especially, by the young PhD students.
The main reason for the success of the meeting, which is the envy of other disciplines, is in the different attitude of the participants, with respect to more traditional symposia, in attending the sessions. Here the meeting belongs to the young students, their presentations take up most of the meeting time, and the vitality of the discussion depends entirely on their active involvement.
Yet, “the Brallo” is not only a yearly event for official scientific presentations and discussion, it is also a rare opportunity, possibly unique of its kind, for establishing long lasting relationships among young fellow scientists.
From 1988 to 2025, in 35 editions, almost 40 Italian Universities sent PhD students to the Meeting. (the size of the red circle is proportional to the number of participants).