Biography

Academic Qualifications
Degree in Biology (= Master Degree; 1991) – Faculty of Sciences University of Lisbon (FCUL), Portugal
Ph.D in Biology, area Ecology (1999) – University of Lisbon (UL), Portugal

Research Activities
Coordination of the team dedicated to the assessment of the threatened status of the species of the taxonomic group Crustacea for the elaboration of the Red Book of Invertebrates of Continental Portugal. Project financed by the Operational Programme for Sustainability and Efficient Use of Resources (POSEUR, ref. POSEUR-03-2215-FC-000094, Portugal 2020 Strategy), and Environmental Fund (Portugal) through FCiências.ID – Associação para a Investigação e Desenvolvimento de Ciências (2018-2023).
Co-coordination and development of the project “Decreasing the Colonisation of Bacteria in Metal Coins”, INCM Innovation Prize 2016 (2018-2019).
Reseach fellow at the Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy, programme TRAIN co-funded by 7th Framework Programme (September 2013-November 2015).
External Collaborating Researcher at Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes, FCUL, Lisbon, Portugal (2009-present).
Coordination of the project “Research, conservation and divulging of biodiversity from temporary ponds”, Fund for Biodiversity 2009 Award, EDP Foundation, Portugal (2010-2012)
Post-doctoral research fellow at FCUL (2006-2008)
Post-doctoral research fellow at Louisiana State University and FCUL (2003-2005)
Post-doctoral research fellow at University of Amsterdam (1999-2002)

Research Interests
Taxonomy of freshwater crustaceans and diversity of copepoda in the Iberian Peninsula. Biochemical aspects underlying organisms’ ecological preferences: Biodiversity of zooplankton and relationship with the available nutrients at the base of the aquatic food web; metabolism of fatty acids (FA) and the role of FA bioconversion and lipid metabolism in crustacean fitness; carotenoids as potential dietary requirements.
In the latter years I’ve become interested in cancer as an ecological phenomenon where cells resort to migration to maintain their high growth rate; metabolomics and lipidomics. Role of fatty acids (FA) and phospholipids in cell membrane stability; lipid metabolism.

Awards
PhD and Post-Doctoral grants awarded by FCT, Portugal.
Fund for Biodiversity 2009 Award by EDP Foundation, Portugal.
Grants to attend courses and conferences awarded by various entities that include Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian and European Molecular Biology Organization.
Honorable Mention at the INCM innovation Prize 2016

Review Editor for Frontiers in Marine Science. Reviewer for several journals that include PLOS ONE, Marine Drugs, Limnology and Oceanography, Marine Ecology Progress Series (MEPS), Archiv für Hydrobiologie, Marine Biology. Invited Editor for the Special Issue of the journal Molecules "The Multiple Roles of Fatty Acids" (2018).