Biosketch

We are currently interested in two main research areas: 1) the molecular mechanisms underlying neurodegeneration and repair; and 2) the development of new molecular tools and cell models of neurodegenerative disorders to test innovative therapeutic strategies. I obtained my PhD degree with highest honours (Cum Laude) in July 2005 at the Univ. of Oviedo (Spain) in 2006. I carried out post-doctoral research on neurodegeneration at The Salk Institute (La Jolla, CA, USA), the Instituto de Medicina Molecular (iMM, Lisbon, Portugal), and the Campus of International Excellence, University of Oviedo (CIE-UO, Oviedo, Spain), always under competitive fellowships. In January 2014, I was awarded a very competitive (7% success rate) Investigator FCT contract-grant to start my own laboratory at the Instituto de Tecnologia Quimica e Biologica (ITQB NOVA, Oeiras, Portugal), and in 2019 I moved to my current position as an Auxiliary Professor at the Faculty of Sciences (Univ. of Lisbon). Either as a team member or as a principal investigator, I have raised approximately 1.2 million euros in grants, not counting individual fellowships.

Since my first article in 2001, I delivered a total of 49 scientific reports (35 in Q1 journals). With or without my PhD supervisor, I published in high IF journals within my field, such as Nature Comm. (IF: 14.919), Cell Death Diff. (IF: 9.050), Cancer Res. (IF: 8.234), J. Pineal Res. (IF: 9.600), Cells (IF: 6.600) or Hum. Mol. Gen. (IF: 6.393). I am a scientific reviewer for various international journals: Blood (IF: 23.629), J. Mol. Biol. (IF: 5.469, Q1), Frontiers in Neurosci. journals (IF>5, Q1), Toxicol. Sci. (IF: 3.854, Q1), Metallomics (IF: 3.796, Q1), PLoS One (IF: 3.234, Q1), and various MDPI journals (Q1-Q2), among others. I have been a jury for 23 MSc thesis and 8 PhD thesis, and participated in 5 PhD committees to evaluate the yearly advance of students. I have supervised 3 postdoctoral researchers, 7 PhD students (5 ongoing), 27 MSc students (2 ongoing), and 7 undergraduate students.

Testimony

I was a post-doc for 4 years at the Cell and Molecular Neuroscience Unit (UNCM, PI: Tiago Outeiro). I learned much of live-cell imaging, mostly thanks to the excellent microscopy and flow cytometry services the iMM has. I also learned molecular cloning and other technical skills. I still use those methods and the tools I developed in my own laboratory, and teach new students how to carry them out. Last but not least, I was lucky to meet many outstanding people who are still friends today.

Contact

LinkedIn