生长因子是一类由机体自身产生并具有促进细胞生长、增殖和分化等多种生物学功能的活性物质。迄今已鉴定出百余种生长因子,而第一个生长因子——神经生长因子则于1950年代发现。做出这项成就的是意大利-美国双重国籍的女科学家蒙塔尔奇尼(Rita Levi-Montalcini),此发现推动了1970年代以来的生长因子研究热潮。1909年4月22日,蒙塔尔奇尼和她的双胞胎姐姐保拉(Polo)出生于意大利都灵的一个 Growth factors are a class of active substances produced by the body itself and have a variety of biological functions such as cell growth, proliferation and differentiation. To date, over a hundred growth factors have been identified, and the first growth factor, nerve growth factor, was discovered in the 1950s. This achievement was made by Rita Levi-Montalcini, an Italian-American female scientist with double nationalities, which led to a boom in growth factors research since the 1970s. April 22, 1909 Montalcino and her twin sister, Polo, were born in Turin, Italy