Dr. Barbara S. Polla pursued her medical studies in Geneva, Switzerland. After obtaining her MD with a specialization in internal medicine, pneumology, and immuno-allergy, she moved to Boston, MA, for two years to gain research experience at the Massachusetts General Hospital and the Harvard School of Public Health.

Upon her return to Geneva, she became, in 1989, the head of the Allergy Unit of the University Hospital. In addition, between 1994 and 2000, Dr. Polla headed the research laboratory of Respiratory Physiology at University Paris V (France). Her research soon positioned her as the expert on heat-shock proteins (stress proteins) and oxygen free radicals.

She became involved in Geneva politics in 1991, and was an elected national counsellor (Swiss House of Representatives) between October 1999 and October 2003. Dr. Polla is the co-author of numerous books and the author of many articles on heat-shock proteins, dermato-cosmetology, art, and politics. In 2003, she published an essay La nécessité libérale and a book of fiction Etreinte and in 2005, Les hommes, ce qui les rend beaux, an investigation of men’s beauty.

Articles