30 Facts About Clara Franzini-Armstrong

1.

Clara Franzini-Armstrong was born on 1938 Florence and is an Italian-born American electron microscopist, and Professor Emeritus of Cell and Developmental Biology at University of Pennsylvania.

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2.

Clara Franzini-Armstrong was born one year before World War II, so she vaguely recalls spending the worst of the war in a hill village.

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3.

Clara Franzini-Armstrong lived with her mother, father, and three brothers, Paolo, Carlo, and Marco.

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4.

Furthermore, Clara Franzini-Armstrong strongly remembers the constant protection and affection that her twin brother showed her as they were growing up.

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5.

Clara Franzini-Armstrong was driven, curious, and very interested in the field of science.

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6.

Clara Franzini-Armstrong's mother did not pursue a science career as she spent most of her time at home raising her four children.

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7.

In 1956, Clara Franzini-Armstrong enrolled in the biological sciences program at the University of Pisa, and she graduated with her PhD degree in 1960.

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8.

Clara Franzini-Armstrong was presented with numerous extraordinary opportunities at Pisa.

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9.

Clara Franzini-Armstrong wrote her first EM thesis at the University of Pisa.

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10.

Later, Clara Franzini-Armstrong was encouraged by Pellegrino, one of her professors, to study and observe changes induced by denervation ?on skeletal muscle.

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11.

Clara Franzini-Armstrong has continually conducted electron microscopy studies for the past 50 years.

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12.

Clara Franzini-Armstrong described Porter as a very charismatic teacher and friend.

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13.

From 1963 – 1964, Clara Franzini-Armstrong worked as Richard Podolsky's research assistant at National Institutes of Health, and he improved her foundation on the physiology of muscle activation.

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14.

From 1964 – 1966, Clara Franzini-Armstrong worked in Sir Andrew Huxley's lab, and there she began to fully comprehend contractile machinery and appreciate optics.

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15.

Clara Franzini-Armstrong engaged in four main phases of structural work in terms of her career.

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16.

Clara Franzini-Armstrong demonstrated that in muscles that are able to engage in high activity rates, a limiting factor is the density of the pump protein and not the density of calcium release channels.

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17.

Clara Franzini-Armstrong earned multiple degrees and gained a great deal of professional experience throughout her many years of education and research.

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18.

Clara Franzini-Armstrong earned her laurea degree, which is a first cycle degree that is equivalent to a bachelor's degree, in biological sciences, at the University of Pisa, Italy from 1956 – 1960.

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19.

From 1960 – 1961, Clara Franzini-Armstrong worked as an assistant professor of pathology at the University of Pisa.

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20.

From 1964 – 1966, Clara Franzini-Armstrong worked as a research assistant at the University College, London, with Prof.

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21.

Clara Franzini-Armstrong was an assistant professor in physiology at the University of Rochester from 1972 – 1975.

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22.

From 2007 to present day, Clara Franzini-Armstrong, PhD, has been working as an Emeritus Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology at the Perelman School of Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania.

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23.

Clara Franzini-Armstrong's work has primarily been focused on electron microscopy of the inner workings of cells, specifically the structural bases of excitation-contraction coupling.

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24.

Clara Franzini-Armstrong is married to Clay Armstrong, a channel electrophysiologist and professor of physiology at the University of Pennsylvania.

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25.

Clara Franzini-Armstrong is a very decorated scientist as she has won numerous honors and awards throughout her career.

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26.

Furthermore, in 1988, Clara Franzini-Armstrong was awarded the position of director of Gordon Research Conference on Excitation-Contraction Coupling.

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27.

In 1989, Franzini-Armstrong was the co-recipient with Dr Knox Chandler of the K C Cole Award of the Biophysical Society.

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28.

Additionally, in 1995, Clara Franzini-Armstrong was inducted into the National Academy of Sciences.

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29.

In 2001, Clara Franzini-Armstrong was inducted into the Royal Society London as a foreign member.

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30.

Also, in 2007, Clara Franzini-Armstrong was awarded the Founder's Award for the Biophysical Society.

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