Scientific Areas

Patricia Rijo

• C20-nor-Abietane and Three Abietane Diterpenoids from Plectranthus mutabilis Leaves as P-  Glycoprotein Modulators. ACS Medicinal Chemistry Letters 2022.
• Rijo, P. & Efferth T. Editorial: II Bio.Natural-Bioactive Natural Products Research Meeting: Pharmacology Perspectives. Front. Pharmacol. Sec. Ethnopharmacology 2022.
• Increased antibacterial properties of indoline-derived phenolic Mannich bases. European Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 2021.
• National Patent INPI – 116986, 2021: Non-leaching biocidal foams with antifouling activity, process for their production and uses.
• Agreement with company: SOMAÍ Pharmaceuticals, 2022, Research and Development of Canabis derivatives for medicinal use.
• Egon Stahl-Award in Bronze: Epole Ntungwe, best PhD thesis, attributed by  Society for Medicinal Plant Research, Thessaloniki, Grécia,  2022.
• Award Portugal 2021Baguitas Ecotrophelia.

Computational Modeling
Daniel dos Santos

• Pedrolane, a Polycyclic Diterpene Scaffold Containing a Bicyclo[2.2.1]heptane System, from Euphorbia pedroi, Org. Lett. 2021.
• FCT Project: Fighting multidrugresistance in cancer by targeting P-glycoprotein, CPCA/A0/7304/2020
• FCT Project: Exploring the efflux and modulation mechanism of Human BCRP through Molecular Dynamics Simulations, CPCA/A00/7319/2020.
• Seed Funding Project: CoSysCan: Combining synergistic approaches to fight cancer, ILIND/COFAC.

Ionic Liquids
Andreia Rosatella

• International, SPS Programme, NATO: Co-coordinator: EnzIL – Biofriendly decontamination of Chemical Warfare Agents.
• FCT Project: Smart Ionic Liquids For Valorization of Food residues, EXPL/OCE-ETA/1109/2021.                                                                   

Diet, Body Composition, Skin and Cardiovascular Health
Cintia Pêgo

• Comparison between Different Groups of Vegetarianism and Its associations with Body Composition: A Literature Review from 2015 to 2021. Nutrients, 2022
• Bioimpedance and Dual-Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry are not equivalent technologies: comparing Fat Mass and Fat-Free Mass. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2022.
• Body composition assessment of vegetarian-vegan and omnivore young women – an exploratory study. Biomedical and Biopharmaceutical Research, 2021

Surveillance of Dietary Parameters and Eating Habits
Cintia Pêgo

• Changes in Eating Habits among Displaced and Non-Displaced University Students. International journal of environmental research and public health, 2020.
• Eating behavior: The influence of age, nutrition knowledge, and Mediterranean diet. Nutrition and Health, 2020.
• University Students Eating Habits: Normal Semester vs. Lockdown Period Caused by COVID-19 Pandemic. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2022.

Health Services Research
João Gregório

• Reimbursed medication adherence enhancing interventions in European countries: Results of the EUREcA study. Frontiers in Pharmacology, 2022.
• The Long-Term Association between Physical Activity and Weight Regain, Metabolic Risk Factors, Quality of Life and Sleep after Bariatric Surgery. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2022
• Implementation of digital monitoring services during the COVID-19 pandemic for patients With chronic diseases: design science approach. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 2021.
• “Each one has their own role”: exploratory study on consumers’ perceptions about nutritionists’ services provided in Community Pharmacies. Research in Social and Administrative Pharmacy, 2021.

Dietary Compounds with Therapeutic Potential for Diabetes
Regina Menezes

• Urolithin B: two-way attack on IAPP proteotoxicity with implications for diabetes. Frontiers in Endocrinology. 2022.
• Updated Information of the Effects of (Poly)phenols against Type-2 Diabetes Mellitus in Humans: Reinforcing the Recommendations for Future Research. Nutrients. 2022.
• Urolithins: Diet-Derived Bioavailable Metabolites to Tackle Diabetes. Nutrients, 2021.
  Rice Compounds with Impact on Diabetes Control. Foods, 2021.
• Combined effect of interventions with pure or enriched mixtures of (poly)phenols and anti-diabetic medication in type 2 diabetes management: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled human trials. European Journal of Nutrition, 2020.

Dietary Compounds with Therapeutic Potential
Emilia Alves

• Homemade Kefir Consumption Improves Skin Condition—A Study Conducted in Healthy and Atopic Volunteers. Foods, 2021.

Exploring Ingredients of Natural Origin
Catarina Rosado

• • • • COMPETE 2020 Project: NETA-New Strategies in Wastewater Treatment, POCI-01-0247-FEDER-046959.
      • Potential use of lipid extracts from the Hermetia illucens larvae as pharmaceutical and cosmetic ingredients. Heliyon, 2022.
      • Evaluation of Industrial Sour Cherry Liquor Wastes as an Ecofriendly Source of Added Value. Waste and Biomass Valorization, 2018.
      • Another Reason for Using Caffeine in Dermocosmetics: Sunscreen Adjuvant. Front Physiol. 2019.
      • Topical drug delivery systems based on bacterial nanocellulose: accelerated stability testing. Int J Molecular Sciences, 2020.
      • Homemade Kefir Consumption Improves Skin Condition—A Study Conducted in Healthy and Atopic Volunteers. Foods, 2021.
      • Impact of Portuguese propolis on keratinocyte proliferation, migration and ROS protection: significance for applications in skin products. Int J Cosmet Sci., 2022.

  Bioinspired Materials in Nanosolutions
  Catarina Leite

  • • • • • FCT Project: Bioinspired materials in nanosolutions to tackle atopic dermatitis, EXPL/BTM-MAT/0112/2021.
          • FCT PhD Research Grant: Valorization of organic waste: Can insect oil become a pharmaceutical ingredient to tackle atopic dermatitis?, UI/BD/151423/2021.
          • Nanodelivery Strategies for Skin Diseases with Barrier Impairment: Focusing on Ceramides and Glucocorticoids. Nanomaterials 2022.
          • CBIOS/FCT Research grant: Multifunctional nanotechnology-based formulations for the management of rare skin diseases related to DNA repair disorders, UIDB/04567/2020.
          • COFAC/ILIND Project: Exploiting the potential of dehydroabietic acid formulations to tackle skin ageing, COFAC/ILIND/CBIOS/2/2020

Dietary Compounds and Kidney Cancer Progression
Ana Sofia Fernandes

• • • A multiple endpoint approach reveals potential in vitro anticancer properties of thymoquinone in human renal carcinoma cells. Food & Chemical Toxicology, 2020.
    • The dietary isothiocyanate erucin reduces kidney cell motility by disturbing tubulin polymerization. Molecular Nutrition & Food Research, 2022.
    • Polyphenols and Their Metabolites in Renal Diseases: An Overview. Foods, 2022.

Loxl2 Inhibitors as Novel Drugs against Breast Cancer
Ana Sofia Fernandes
João Guilherme Costa

• • • LOXL2 Inhibitors and Breast Cancer Progression. Antioxidants, 2021.
    • Lysyl oxidases expression and breast cancer progression: a bioinformatic analysis. Frontiers in Pharmacology, 2022.
    • COFAC/ILIND Project: LusoModLox – Lusophone flora fighting disease: focus on therapeutic lysyl oxidase modulators

Role of Tmbims on Glioma Progression
Nuno Saraiva

• • • Stimulation of cell invasion via an H2O2-Dependent Mechanism, Redox Biology, 2020
    • FCT Grant: Fine-tuning TMBIM ion channel activity to control hallmarks of cancer, CPCA/A1/410638/2021

Redox and Immunological Biomarkers in Breast Cancer
Ana Sofia Fernandes
Nuno Saraiva

• Tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes in early breast cancer: an exploratory analysis focused on HER2+ subtype in Portuguese patients. Current Medical Research and Opinion, 2022.
• Sociedade Portuguesa de Senologia Award: Occurrence of relapse after neoadjuvant treatment with trastuzumab and pertuzumab in HER2+ breast cancer patients: preliminary results from an Iberic cohort, 2021.

Microcirculation Modelling
Luis Monteiro Rodrigues

• Lower limb massage in humans increases local perfusion and impacts systemic hemodynamics, Journal of applied physiology, 2020.
• Characterizing Vascular Dysfunction in Genetically Modified Mice through the Hyperoxia Model, Int. J. Mol. Sci., 2019

Lower Limb Perfusion Asymmetries
Luis Monteiro Rodrigues

• Lower limb dynamic activity significantly reduces foot skin perfusion– exploring data with different optical sensors in age-grouped healthy adults. Skin Pharmacol Physiol., 2021.
• Perfusion, Stance and Plantar Pressure Asymmetries on the Human Foot in the Absence of Disease—A Pilot Study, Symmetry, 2022

Skin Modeling
Luis Monteiro Rodrigues

• The Impact of Kefir on Epidermal Water Homeostasis in Healthy Human Skin. Life, 2022.