Biosketch

Elsa Anes obtained the degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences in 1988 and started her teaching career as Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Lisbon. The PhD work focused on the construction of integrative vectors for the development of recombinant vaccines in BCG under the supervision of Prof. Moniz Pereira.

After the PhD in Pharmacy-Microbiology in 1998, she moves the research area to the Cell Biology of Mycobacteria Infection. In 2000, she did a post-graduation in Molecular Biology of the Cell at the Institute Pasteur, Paris a starting point for a postdoctoral formation at EMBL in Heidelberg (Griffiths laboratory), with the support of EMBO and Gulbenkian fellowships (2000-2005). Her work focused on the role of cytoskeleton during mycobacteria phagocytosis to decipher pathways of tuberculosis bacilli pathogenesis. In parallel, she started her independent research group at URIA-CPM-FFUL as head of the Host-Mycobateria Interactions group.

In 2007, she was accepted as external group leader at the Institute of Molecular Medicine, FMUL after positive evaluation by an international group of experts. Since 2014, she is the head of HPI laboratory (iMed-FFUL). As a pharmacist trained in microbiology, immunology and cell biology, she focus the research on host cell factors that contribute to TB control as well as the M. tuberculosis factors that this pathogen uses to highjack host cells: how it manipulates gene expression, the cytoskeleton, vesicle trafficking, and innate/adaptive immune responses including inflammasome activation and the activity of antimicrobial proteases.

In addition, she has been enrolled in the development of new antimycobacterials targeting TB bacilli. Her lab is providing the basis for the development of novel therapeutic and diagnostic for TB including during co-infection with HIV. In parallel with the research activities as Professor at FFUL she coordinated Cellular Biology, and presently Immunology (both from MICF course near 250 students per year), Cellular Microbiology and Applied Microbiology (2nd cycle masters, near 30 students per year). She has published more than 40 articles/book chapters in international journals, gathering near 1800 citations (H-index=23 scopus); successfully supervised several MSc, PhD and Post-doctoral fellows; has been PI in several competitive funded grants. Her work has been awarded several prizes.

Testimony

I can testify the great experience while as external group at IMM between 2007-2014. The scientific environment and discussions, the meetings, seminars and particularly the availability of equipment that make possible to achieve great results for publication. The contact of the master and PhD students with other groups at IMM largely contributed for an outstanding formation of these students.

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