Rita Levi Montalcini, digital illustration

Rita Levi-Montalcini (1909-2012) was an Italian neurobiologist and joint-recipient of the 1986 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for the discovery of nerve growth factor (NGF). Levi-Montalcini attended the University of Turin Medical School having overcome her father's objections to women pursuing professional careers. She graduated from medicine in 1936, before choosing to specialise in neuro…