Where are the alumni from Bioengineering now? The 'Made in Bio' panel will guide you through the journeys of former students from each branch of Bioengineering, tracing their paths from academy to their current lives.
Álvaro Samagaio
Álvaro Samagaio is a trailblazer in the integration of bioengineering with technologies such as machine learning and AI. With a strong foundation in both technical and managerial aspects of technology application, Alvaro has made significant contributions to organizations like Fraunhofer Portugal and LTPlabs. Now, as an Analytics Engineer at Rows, he continues to push the boundaries of innovation, empowering data-driven decision-making with his technical prowess and managerial acumen.
Catarina Costa
Catarina Costa completed her integrated Masters in Bioengineering in 2017, specializing in Molecular Biotechnology. Catarina's journey epitomizes a relentless pursuit of knowledge and innovation. From volunteering at esteemed labs in Porto to conducting groundbreaking research on brain development and disease at the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology in Vienna, Catarina's contributions have earned her numerous awards and accolades, including the prestigious Impact Award from the City of Vienna.
Rita Santos
Graduating in the top 3 of her class at FEUP in 2011, Rita Santos' journey began with pioneering research on fruit texture enhancement, leading to a patent application. Her quest for knowledge took her across Europe, earning her a double PhD with distinction. Returning to FEUP, Rita immersed herself in groundbreaking research, earning accolades and contributing to the biotech startup scene. Now, as an innovation consultant at Innovayt, she continues to drive progress, helping academic and industry partners secure vital funding for their ventures.
In today's rapidly evolving landscape of scientific exploration, the ethical dimensions of research practices have come under heightened scrutiny. As research institutes burgeon and scientific inquiry expands into new frontiers, the ethical implications of experimental methodologies, particularly those involving animal testing, have taken center stage. In this panel, several of the moral questions implicated in scientific research will be addressed, while also inviting the participants to engage in the discussion and raise their own concerns.
Anna Olsson
Animal experimentation is one of the most controversial issues in contemporary biomedical research. This controversy is not new: for as long as researchers have been using animals in experiments this practise has been the subject of criticism from both inside and outside the research community. The 3Rs principle of Replacement (of animal experiments with non-animal models), Reduction (of numbers of animals used) and Refinement (of animal experiments to minimize suffering) was first presented in 1959 as a guiding principle for scientists to minimize the harm caused to animals in research. In this presentation, I will give an overview of what the 3Rs mean in practice for researchers in 2024, present the 3Rs resources that are available to researchers in Portugal, and discuss what it means for the personal and professional ethics of early stage researchers.
Anna Olsson is the Principal Researcher, Group Leader at I3S - Institute for Research and Innovation in Health, University of Porto. Her main research interests are related to animal science, such as its behavior and welfare and ethics of the use of animals in various research areas.
Darla Goeres
Engineers have an ethical obligation to protect public safety, the environment, and industry. Decisions based on integrity and that consider the risks and benefits, both in the short and long term, must be considered. It is also important to engage specialists outside of the engineering field and to elicit input from the multiple stakeholders. Three case studies will be explored in this presentation that investigate ethical decision making in planetary protection that is associated with the exploration of space, the use of human subjects in clinical tests, and ethics in publishing.
Darla Goeres is a Research Professor of Regulatory Science at the Center for Biofilm Engineering, Montana State University and ERA Chair at LEPABE, here in Porto. Her studies are related to the US regulatory bodies and the development and validation of Standard Test Methods for growing, treating sampling and analyzing biofilm bacteria.
Tiago Marques
Breast Cancer is the most common form of cancer with more than 2 million new cases diagnosed every year and with one in eight women developing it during their lives. Despite improvements in early detection and treatment options, there are still several problems with current treatment workflows, leading to increased clinical costs and non-optimal clinical outcomes. Namely, tumor localization in the operating room (OR) relies on invasive and imprecise methods that result in failure to fully remove cancer tissue and requiring subsequent surgical interventions. To address this, my team is developing an innovative medical device, combining artificial intelligence (AI) and extended reality (XR), to allow precise and non-invasive tumor localization in the OR. Central to it, is the creation of high-fidelity, digital breast models (digital twins) from medical imaging data that provide anatomical information and can simulate tissue deformation with changes in patient's position. In the OR, an intelligent 3D sensing system scans the patient, and aligns the digital twin with the patient's body in real-time. Finally, the tumor is displayed to the surgeon using an XR headset, allowing them to see the tumor through the patient's skin. This novel type of AI-enabled, XR-guided precision surgery will result in more accurate surgeries, leading to improved clinical workflows and better quality of life for patients, while reducing treatment costs.
Tiago Marques is a Senior Research Scientist at the Champalimaud Clinical Center where he co-leads the Digital Surgery LAB. His main research focuses on the development of innovative medical devices that allow surgeons to visualize relevant anatomical information through the patient's skin. Before, Tiago worked at the McGovern Institute for Brain and Cognitive Sciences at MIT.
Welcome to an exploratoy panel, fueled by curiosity and innovation at the forefront of human knowledge. Our panelists represent fresh ideas in their fields, delving into the complexities of human microbiome and genomics, aerospace engineering, and neurodevelopmental disorders exploration. We do hope these ideas save the cat.
Chong Li
The development of the human brain involves unique processes that can contribute to neurodevelopmental disorders. Cerebral organoids enable the study of these disorders in a human context. The CRISPR-human organoids-single-cell RNA sequencing (CHOOSE) system was developed for pooled loss-of-function screening in mosaic organoids. By perturbing 36 high-risk autism spectrum disorder genes, it was found that dorsal intermediate progenitors, ventral progenitors, and upper-layer excitatory neurons are the most vulnerable cell types. We constructed a developmental gene regulatory network of cerebral organoids using single-cell transcriptomes, chromatin modalities, identified autism spectrum disorder-associated and perturbation-enriched regulatory modules. Perturbing members of the BRG1/BRM-associated factor (BAF) chromatin remodeling complex leads to an enrichment of ventral telencephalon progenitors. This study enables high-throughput phenotypic characterization of disease susceptibility genes in organoid models with cell state, molecular pathway, and gene regulatory network readouts.
Chong Li is a trailblazer in Human Genetics and Genomics. Through his pioneering research at Austria's Institute of Molecular Biotechnology, Chong delves deep into the intricate gene regulatory mechanisms shaping brain development and unraveling the mysteries of neurodevelopmental disorders. Leveraging state-of-the-art techniques like the CRISPR-human organoids-single-cell RNA-seq (CHOOSE) system, he unveils groundbreaking insights into synaptic degeneration, pushing the boundaries of possibility.
Inês d'Avila
Inês d'Avila embodies the spirit of resilience and ambition, channeling her expertise in aerospace engineering to propel the Portuguese space sector to new heights. As a key figure within the Portuguese Space Agency, she spearheads initiatives in Space Transportation and Safety, imprinting her mark on prestigious international platforms like the European Rocketry Challenge. Her unwavering dedication and visionary leadership herald a future where the sky is not the limit, but merely the beginning.
Sandra Cardoso
Recent research suggests that gut microbiota plays a crucial role in maintaining intestinal homeostasis by modulating immune responses. In Parkinson's disease patients(PD), gut microbiota-mediated intestinal immune alterations may trigger PD-related neurodegeneration. To test this hypothesis, we colonized wild-type mice with fecal material, observing a caudo-rostral accumulation of alpha-synuclein aggregates that correlated with a decrease in mitochondrial function. In the midbrain neuronal mitochondrial fragmentation may be involved in the activation of immune and inflammatory responses. Our findings reveal that PD gut microbiota induces the pathogenesis of PD in wild-type mice, providing new insights into the relationship between the gut microbiome, the immune system and the brain.
Sandra Cardoso is an esteemed Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Medicine and visionary leader of the Gut-Brain Axis Group at CNC, University of Coimbra. With a prolific record of over a hundred publications and a mantle adorned with prestigious accolades such as the Pfizer award, Sandra's research resonates at the forefront of neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric disease exploration. Her pioneering insights into the intricate interplay of microbiome-mitochondria crosstalk illuminate new pathways in understanding neuronal immunity and disease progression, paving the way for transformative breakthroughs in healthcare.
All around the world, couples struggle with the impossibility of having genetically related children. Luckily, technology has been evolving and the investment in new cutting-edge approaches is immense. From in vitro fertilization, a technique that goes back more than half a century, to in vitro gametogenesis, a new method under development that may allow infertile people and same-sex couples to have progeny, there are endless possibilities enabling, through baby steps, novel and innovative ways of reproduction.
Begoña Aran
Genome Editing (GE) techniques in preimplantation embryos can be used to alter disease-causing genetic mutations and to study the role of specific genes during embryo development. In order to validate the CRISPR/Cas9 technique as an EG tool in zygotes and to study the morphokinetics of embryos, our team realized some experiments that consisted on injecting zygotes on embryos and then incubate them to analise if GE was observed, the results showed that GE as present in 72.1% of the embryos on the study group. The use of CRISPR/Cas9 to study the role of specific genes in early human embryos represents a unique opportunity to explore and further clarify basic molecular and genetic mechanisms of human pre-implantation embryo development.
Begoña Aran is the Stem Cell Bank Coordinator at the CMRB. Her activity is focused on the derivation, generation, culture, characterization and banking of human Pluripotent Stem Cell (hPSC) and their clinical translation. She is also involved in human embryo research projects and also interested in legislation and bioethics in embryo and hPSC research.
Marcia Ferraz
Traditional methods for in vitro embryo production often face challenges in efficiency and consistency. Microfluidic systems offer precise fluid control, reduced reagent consumption, and enhanced throughput, revolutionizing gamete handling, fertilization, and embryo culture. Technologies like droplet-based microfluidics and on-chip monitoring have the potential to significantly enhance embryo production outcomes while advancing our understanding of early embryo development. By leveraging the advantages of microfluidics and 3D culture systems, we anticipate substantial progress in the efficiency, effectiveness, and clinical success of in vitroembryo production. This talk will highlight the convergence of bioengineering and reproductive biology, offering promising insights for attendees interested in assisted reproduction and biotechnological advancements.
Marcia Ferraz is a Professor of Clinical Experimental Reproductive Medicine, and has her research focus on combining the fields of veterinary science, biotechnology, and molecular biology to create dynamic reproductive models to improve reproductive aspects spanning biomedical, agricultural, and wildlife sciences. In addition to that, Marcia was the first one creating an oviduct-on-a-chip. Nowadays, Ferraz lab is the second German University based laboratory to receive the My Green Lab certification.
Ramon Botigelli
Significant advancements have been made in the development of culture methods that can adapt PSC lines to different states of pluripotency,being a key to establishing species and the genetic link between generations. In mice, in vitro gametogenesis (IVG) allows viable gametes to be generated from PSCs, replicating the female reproductive cycle in vitro. In humans some reports have successfully described the ability to differentiate PSCs into primordial germ cell-like cells, showing advancements in the induction and propagation of the human embryonic germline, indicating the real possibility of IVG. Despite the promises, various technological, ethical, and biological challenges must be addressed before IVG can be translated into clinical practice. This talk will highlight recent advances, ongoing challenges, and future prospects in the field of in vitro gametogenesis, offering insights for attendees interested in reproductive biology, regenerative medicine, and assisted reproduction.
Ramon Botigelli is a postdoctoral fellowship, with a Ph.D. in Pharmacology and Biotechnology from IBB-UNESP, who carried out part of his doctoral project at the University of California Davis (USA). His researches focus on mammalian embryo development, embryonic cell fate, and reprogramming of adult cells into iPSCs to understand the key players of these pathways/mechanisms in maintaining pluripotency and cellular differentiation for application in in vitro models.
Join our journey through cutting-edge neuroengineering approaches, unlocking the secrets to supercharging brain function and reshaping the intersection of technology and the mind. Brace yourself for a revolution in decoding the limitless potential of the human mind!
Federico Barban
Federico Barban is an Assistant Professor at the University of Genoa, specializing in bioengineering and neuroengineering. With a Ph.D. from the University of Genoa and the Italian Institute of Technology, his research spans in vivo electrophysiology, neuroengineering and data analysis. Federico has contributed to diverse projects revolving around neuroengineering, neural data analysis and electroceuticals therapies including non-invasive brain stimulation in humans and intracortical microstimulation in brain lesioned preclinical models.
Manuel João Pinto
I graduated in Medicine at FMUP in 2012 and conducted my PhD at the University of Basel from 2015 to 2021, studying brainstem circuits controlling the selection and execution of body movements. In order to do this, I used mouse genetics in intersection with viral vector tools to dissect neuronal circuits in vivo, both anatomically and funcionally. I am currently a 5th year Neurosurgery resident at São João Hospital, where I integrate a multidisciplinary team trying to obtain clinically-relevant information from deep structures in the human brain, via local field potential recordings.
Onur Parlak
Onur Parlak earned his PhD in Bioelectronics from Linkoping University in 2015. He then joined Stanford University for postdoctoral research to focus on on wearable bioelectronics. After spending three years at Stanford University, he turned back to Sweden and joined the Karolinska Institutet (KI) to translate his engineering skills into medical settings with repatriation grant support from the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation. He has been recently awarded by KI Strategic Funding as an Assistant Professor as a part of the KI investment program to recruit and support leading junior researchers with particularly outstanding scientific merits and future potential and selected as a Karolinska Institute Research Incubator (KIRI) Fellow. Since January 2021, Dr. Parlak has been acting as Assistant Professor and running his own lab at the Department of Medicine, Solna, Dermatology Division in Karolinska Institutet where he specializes in developing wearable medical sensors, bioelectronic devices and their applications in the area of personalized medicine and medical diagnostics.
In the face of environmental challenges caused by human activities, exists a powerful ally: Bioremediation. Whether it's an oil spill contaminating the ocean, leachates from a lithium mine, or industrial waste polluting our ecosystems, nature offers a solution. This uprising approach harnesses the power of living organisms to heal the damage we've inflicted upon the environment. By utilizing the natural capabilities of bacteria, plants, microalgae and even fungus, we can mitigate and even reverse the harm caused by our actions in an eco-friendly way.
Ana Paula Mucha
Spills of oil and maritime fuels endanger seriously marine ecosystems, leading to high losses of marine life and impacting human health. Given the high marine traffic and volume transported, coastal zones and port areas are very susceptible to these spills, which can occur during loading, discharging and bunkering. Ports can also suffer from chronic pollution, as small leakages and losses of these contaminants throughout years can lead to their accumulation in sediments and water. First-line responses to oil and maritime fuel spills inside ports are similar to those employed near shore and usually include physical (e.g., controlled burning; absorbing) and chemical (e.g., dispersing) technologies for removal of oil, having each port their additional contingency plan and remediation protocols. These treatments are important to rapidly control the diffusion and drift of the spill, but are not suitable for ecological restoration. Bioremediation has proven to be an ecological alternative to traditional remediation protocols, as the addition of nutrients (biostimulation) or efficient degrading microorganisms (bioaugmentation) can enhance pollutants degradation. The use of native microorganisms is highly advantageous because they are better adapted to the affected environment, leading to a better efficiency in the degradation of complex hydrocarbons. Plus, this technique avoids the unpredictable ecological impacts that the introduction of non-native organisms into a particular environment can cause. Researchers from CIIMAR have been involved in several national and international projects within the bioremediation topic, regarding the development of innovative approaches to oil spills cleaning.
Ana Paula Mucha has a research position at CIIMAR, University of Porto, Portugal, being member of the Board of Directors and the Principal Investigator of the ECOBIOTEC-BMS team (Bioremediation and Microbes for Sustainability). Also, she is an Invited Assistant Professor at the Department of Biology of Faculty of Sciences of University of Porto. She focuses her research on the relation between microorganisms and contaminants, aiming the development of bioremediation technologies for ecosystems recovery and environmental sustainability. She also explores the microbe-plant associations for the development of nature-based solutions for water management, and the microbe-animal interactions to increase environmental sustainability of aquaculture production. She authored ca. 95 SCI papers including high profile journals in the field of Marine and Environmental Sciences. She has been involved in multiple regional, national and international projects, and presently coordinates CIIMAR participation in the European project "BIOSYSMO - BIOremediation systems exploiting SYnergieS for improved removal of Mixed pOllutants" (GAP-101060211). Also she coordinates the project "Ocean3R - Reduce pressures, restore and regenerate the NW-Portuguese ocean and waters" (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000064), and the Research Line 4 (Marine biobanks as tools for marine biotechnology) in the structured program of R&D&I "ATLANTIDA - Platform for the monitoring of the North Atlantic Ocean and tools for the sustainable exploitation of the marine resources" (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000040). In addition, she has been involved as supervisor in several national and European Master and PhD programmes, and presently she co-coordinates the FCUP team responsible for the M2ex-European Joint Doctorate "Exploiting metal-microbe applications to expand the circular economy" (European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant agreement No 861088).
Paula Alvarenga
Mining activities in the Iberian Pyrite Belt (IPB) were, and still are, very relevant for the Portuguese socioeconomic development. However, the operation and closure of some of these mines was carried out without considering their potential environmental impacts, leading to the arise of extensive areas with very acid soils, high concentration of metal(loid)s, and low organic matter and nutrients concentrations, hindering the reestablishment of a natural plant cover. It is important to implement sustainable remediation actions that could reduce the risks associated with the contaminants present in these soils (especially As, Cu, Pb, and Zn) and recover soil's ecosystem functions. With this aim, a set of studies were developed with soils from IPB mines, in which different waste-derived amendments were evaluated (e.g., sewage sludge, compost from urban or agricultural wastes, biomass ash, drinking-water treatment residuals). These amendments, if correctly chosen and combined, can supply organic matter and nutrients to these soils, amending their acidity and contributing to the immobilization of metal(loid)s by different mechanisms, which can lead the way to the establishment of a sustainable plant cover and to the reactivation of soil's microbial processes. This specific type of phytoremediation strategy can be called assisted- or aided-phytostabilization, whose benefits and risks must be assessed in an integrated way, using a set of chemical, biochemical and ecotoxicological parameters, able to demonstrate the recovery of soil functionality and the reduction of environmental risks. This is the only way to defend this soil remediation strategy, in which the decrease of the total concentration of contaminants is not achieved, rather their immobilization and the decrease in their (bio)availability.
Paula Alvarenga is an Assistant Professor at Instituto Superior de Agronomia (ISA), the School of Agriculture from the University of Lisboa, Department of Natural Resources, Environment and Territory (DRAT) since 2017, integrating LEAF (Linking Landscape, Environment, Agriculture and Food Research Center), and the Associate Laboratory TERRA. From 1993 to 2016 she was an Assistant and Professor at the Polytechnic Institute of Beja, School of Agriculture, where she began her career. She has a PhD in Environmental Engineering (ISA, 2009), MsC in Analytical Chemistry (University of Évora, 1998), and Graduation in Chemical Engineering (Instituto Superior Técnico, 1992). Her research activities have been mainly focused on soil pollution and remediation, phytoremediation, use of waste-derived soil amendments/fertilizers, and water quality and contamination. In these areas, she has published over 53 articles in international indexed specialized journals, 9 book chapters and 18 articles in Books of Proceedings of International Conferences. She participated, as an Investigator or Coordinator, in 23 projects, both national and internationally funded, and is Associated Editor of the Journals: "Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems - Waste Management in Agroecosystems" and "Spanish Journal of Soil Science". ORCID: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3225-3358
Virginia Echavarri-Bravo
The development of sustainable recycling methods for metals contained in spent lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) used in electric vehicles is vital in securing a supply of critical metals to meet net-zero CO2 emission ambitions and to make of the LIB technology a real alternative to petrol and diesel. As part of the ReLiB project, funded by the Faraday Institution, our group is responsible for investigating the biological separation and purification of critical and valuable metals contained in spent LIBs. Our bioprocess supports the principles of green chemistry: it takes place in aqueous reactions, there is no need for the addition hazardous solvents, reactions take place at relatively low temperatures (<= 30ºC) and can be adapted and optimised for recycling metals from different battery chemistries by exploiting the specificity of biology for metals aided by Engineering Biology. To date we have demonstrated the feasibility of a bioseparation process for the selective recovery of valuable metals from polymetallic solutions representative of those obtained from hydrometallurgical processes applied for recycling a wide range of LIB chemistries. The proposed presentation aims to update the audience on our latest metal bioseparation scale-up work and other topics related to the sustainability of LIBs.
I have a versatile academic background, I completed my MEng Agricultural Engineering in 2004 (Universidad Publica de Navarra, UPNA, Spain). During my time as undergraduate I had the opportunity to take part in a few research projects in the field of soil sciences and I loved it. After my MEng I worked in the renewable energy industry sector for four years as an enterprise resource planning consultant. Since I was missing sciences, I decided to take a MSc Marine Biodiversity and Biotechnology in Edinburgh, at Heriot-Watt University (Scotland). Afterwards I got my PhD in the Microbiology and Nanotoxicology fields at the same university. I graduated in 2015 and immediately after I joined the Horsfall group based at the University of Edinburgh. I have worked since then in interdisciplinary projects such as the development of nanoparticle composites and the recovery of metals from phytoremediation biomass and industrial waste. As part of the Faraday Institution's ReLiB project I work towards the development of more sustainable recycling methods to separate and up-cycle critical and valuable metals contained in spent lithium-ion batteries.
Around our world, there are places that no one would believe that anything would live there. But there is! Deserts (or sand or ice), hot springs, salt flats or in space, life has incredible adaptation capabilities! This panel will show you the adversities that the human body suffers by going into space, how can bacteria live in Antartica and how can we extract surfactants from halophiles.
Cátia Santos-Pereira
Surfactants are tensioactive compounds extensively used worldwide in several industrial sectors. Being present in numerous products including cosmetics, detergents, fabric softeners, toothpaste, paints, among many others, surfactants constitute an essential part of our everyday lives. Hence, millions of tonnes of surfactants are manufactured every year. Most commercially available surfactants are non-renewable petroleum-based compounds whose extensive use may lead to a profound environmental impact. This prompts the search for new environmentally friendly alternatives, including the so-called biosurfactants, which are tensioactive molecules produced by microorganisms that are recognized as sustainable alternatives to their chemical counterparts. Hypersaline environments are an attractive source of microbial communities that, due to their adaptation to extreme abiotic conditions, produce special secondary metabolites comprising hotspots for discovering new biosurfactants.
Cátia Santos-Pereira is a postdoctoral researcher at the Centre of Biological Engineering (CEB) from the University of Minho (Braga, Portugal). She is currently working under the scope of the B3iS (Biodiversity and Bioprospection of Biosurfactants in Saline Environments) project. She completed her PhD in Molecular and Environmental Biology in 2021 at the University of Minho in collaboration with University of Oviedo (Spain), University of Bordeaux (France) and University of Porto (Portugal). Her current research interests are focused on the bioprospection of bioactive molecules from extreme environments. She has published articles and book chapters in top ranked journals, has been awarded prestigious fellowships, event/travel grants, student awards in international conferences, and prizes for best oral presentation (2), best poster presentation (4) and Science communication (1). She has been a member of the organizing committee of different scientific meetings/symposia/workshops, member of the academic jury of MSc thesis, PhD projects and BSc projects, and the reviewer of various high level international scientific journals. She has also been involved in teaching activities including the modules of MSc courses and tutor in 6 advanced courses for MSc students. She has been involved in supervision and mentoring of MSc and BSc students, as well as summer science internships. Aligned with her passion for Science Communication, she has been actively engaged in outreach activities including sharing Science with high school students, volunteer at childcare institution, Science Festivals, University Open Doors and European Researchers Night. Further, she was an event manager (2018-2020) of an International Science Communication Festival called Pint of Science.
Sandra Pucciarelli
The demand for recyclable and sustainable biopolymers is constantly increasing, due to worldwide efforts aiming to replace petroleum-based products and to decrease the environmental impact of synthetic polymers production. My research focuses on biopolymer's synthesis using Antarctic bacteria as biofactories. Antarctic bacteria developed unique strategies of survival, involving the ability to resist freezing temperatures and UV radiations, to sequester iron under limited concentrations, to detoxify hazard compounds, heavy metals, and pollutants. This indicates the enormous potential in finding solutions to face adverse conditions. Adaptive characteristics of Antarctic microbes can be exploited for the synthesis of novel biomolecules. IrIdES srl owns bacterial strains able to produce biopolymers such as cellulose, bioplastics and resins, starting from different sugars and nitrogen sources and using protocols that do not imply the use of toxic substances (PCT patents: WO2022/136246 and WO2022/136277). The synthesis can be performed in inexpensive media, such as natural seawater and sugars, or using food waste, contributing to the process of circular economy. The biopolymers produced by these two Antarctic bacteria were deeply analysed through electron microscopy (SEM) and FTIR spectroscopy. Their genomes were also sequenced with Nanopore technology: this analysis showed that these bacteria had operons encoding the enzymes responsible to produce bio cellulose and bioplastics, even though with unique organization. These results confirm that these bacteria represent good tools for biomaterial synthesis that can be applied for a new generation of goods for citizens' health and utility.
Sandra Pucciarelli. PhD (ORCID: 0000-0003-4178-2689) has extensive expertises in biotechnology, microbiology, and molecular ecology. Part of her scientific formation was performed in excellent research laboratories of Italian and foreign institutions including the CNRS-LEBS (Laboratoires d'enzymologie et Biochimie Structurale) at Gif-sut Yvette (France), the Northeastern University in Boston (MA-USA), and in companies as the Elvesys, Paris, France. She participated in the Antarctic campaign in Palmer Station (March-May 1997) obtaining an Antarctica Service Medal of the United States of America in recognition of the valuable contribution to exploration and Scientific Achievement under the US Antarctic Research Program. The research activity of Sandra Pucciarelli is focused on the isolation, culturing and characterization of microbes, genome sequencing and analysis. She is interested in the molecular mechanisms of cold adaptation. She possesses the know-how for gene cloning, heterologous expression of proteins, enzyme optimization by site directed mutagenesis and their applications. She is also involved in the search for new bioactive molecules, as antibiotics, and new biopolymers. Sandra is among the inventors of five patents held by IrIdES srl. The activity of Irides S.r.l is based on the application of Antarctic bacterial strains in bioremediation and in the production of biopolymers, including metal nanoparticles, biocellulose and plastics. She has been the PI and international coordinator of the H2020-Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions RISE-Metable-645693. Title: Advanced bioinformatics for genome and metagenome analyses with discovery of novel biocatalysts from extremophiles: implications for improving industrial bio-processes. UE contribution: 337.500 euro. https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/645693/it). Sandra is the author of 58 papers, most of which as first or last author. She has been a member of the Committee of Equity and Gender Guarantee at the University of Camerino, and now is delegate for Service for welcoming students with disabilities and with SLD (Specific Learning Disorders).
Sudhakar Rajulu
Design is the way we have looked for ways to improve our life, whether it be for life at home, work, or recreation. Every aspect of our normal day-to-day activities at home and at workplaces is flooded with designs that are the fruits of ideas that germinate in our minds. When we make innovative designs or modify an existing design, whether it is an aircraft seat, or a surgical tool, or an athletic gear, or a space suit or a patient assist device, it is essential to know the design is inclusive of all users. Often, we make mass quantities of new designs for the whole population after only testing for a small set of the population. It is exceedingly difficult to make significant changes to these products while in use. We have seen evidence of this in the aircraft seat accommodation or the seat design itself. This presentation will discuss the way to approach population analysis methods to ensure fit, accommodation, comfort, and performance by way of demonstrating how we were able to accomplish this in a real-life example for the space design application.
Sudhakar Rajulu obtained his bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the College of Engineering of Madras University. He received his masters' and doctorate degrees in Industrial and Systems Engineering while specializing in occupational biomechanics from Ohio State University. Soon after that he joined NASA first as a contractor and later as a civil servant and recently retired while serving as the Technical Manager for the Anthropometry and Biomechanics Facility. Among many of his accomplishments, he is proud to have developed methodologies to ensure crew-hardware interface compatibility is the highest and helped engineers to meet their responsibilities of designing hardware to accommodate all eligible users. He has a unique background of having collaborated with engineers at NASA for developing requirements that are essential and easy to implement as well as developed methodologies to verify and validate that the engineers are in need understanding and remedying issues in the design.
Against the backdrop of a rapidly evolving artistic landscape, bioart has emerged as a trailblazing medium, pushing the boundaries of traditional artistic practice and challenging our perceptions of what constitutes art. In this panel, we invite you to journey into the fascinating world of bioartistry, where living organisms, technology, and imagination intertwine to produce awe-inspiring works of art.
Catarina Pinheiro
Biotechnology has emerged as a pivotal tool in the preservation and restoration of cultural heritage objects, especially when confronting the challenge of biological contamination. The application of biotechnology in this field is multifaceted, involving both the identification of contaminants and the development of biobased methods for their removal, prevention and, in specific cases, even consolidation. One of the key advantages of using biotechnology in studying biological contamination is its ability to provide precise and comprehensive analyses of the biodeterioration processes. Through techniques such as DNA sequencing and microbial profiling, researchers can identify the specific types of microorganisms responsible for the decay, a piece of information crucial for tailoring conservation strategies and one that provides valuable insights into the history of the artefacts. Parchment manufacturing and the possible techniques used to achieve this ingenious writing support can be traced by the microbial profile presented and the outputs of this study reveal also a possible reason for a purple deterioration that affects a significant number of medieval codices. This presentation will focus precisely on one of these examples from the Alcobacenses collection and the complex questions the results still pose.
Ana Catarina Pinheiro has a degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences and in Conservation and Restoration and a PhD in Conservation and Restoration - Conservation Sciences from Universidade Nova de Lisboa. Recently, between 2019 and 2023 she was a researcher at the HERCULES Laboratory, University of Evora, where she dedicated herself to the study of occupational exposure in Conservation and Restoration, Sustainability in this area of Heritage preservation and the biodeterioration of parchment and other organic and inorganic supports. At the end of 2023, she joined the Jose de Figueiredo Laboratory, now part of Museus e Monumentos de Portugal E.P.E., where she will be responsible for the macro and microbiological analysis of the artistic and cultural assets of Portuguese heritage. As well as teaching, she is the author of several scientific articles and book chapters and is enthusiastic about different ways of communicating science to the public.
Catarina Pombo Nabais
My presentation will explore the most radical case of bioart, the one that uses the body itself as an artistic medium. Bringing into discussion some of the most controversial examples of body art, I will give special attention to a recent kind of tattoos: the technological, smart, digital tattoos which have the capacity of continuously monitoring vital, bio-metric data of the tattooed individuals. Even if still temporary, technological tattoo is exponentially expanding, aiming at becoming a permanent bio-smart daily device being a game changer for personalized medicine and health care treatments. Now, as a biowerable, tech-tattoo offers new possibilities to think out the intricated relationship between technology, science, and society, more specifically, the relation between medicine, AI intelligence and governance politics. Moreover, the investment being done in this kind of technology from international companies allied with research centres and science laboratories makes its biopolitical power clear and its philosophical questioning urgent.
Catarina Pombo Nabais is Graduated in Philosophy - Variant in Philosophy of Science - by the Faculty of Letters of Lisbon University (1998), she obtained her Diplome d'Études Approfondies in Philosophy at the University of Amiens, France, (1999) and concluded her PhD in Philosophy by the University of Paris VIII, under the supervision of the philosopher Jacques Rancière (2007) with the highest distinction for a PhD dissertation in France. In 2013, she published her first book titled Gilles Deleuze: Philosophie et Litterature, by the French editor L'Harmattan, Paris, with a Preface from Rancière. Ronald Bogue, a worldwide major figure in the Deleuzian studies, decided to translate and to preface the book into English and her book was published in the USA by the publisher Roman & Littlefield (2020). More recently, she published, in co-authorship with the philosopher, art critic and media theorist Boris Groys, another book titled Towards Self-Design. Philosophical conversations (UCoimbra Press 2022) and organized the book Creative Processes in Science and Arts. The issue of public participation (Afrontamento, 2021). She is Invited Professor at the Faculty of Human Motricity and Scientific Researcher at the Department of History and Philosophy of Sciences, both from ULisbon. From 2007-2019, she was a Post-Doctoral fellow with a grant awarded by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) at the Center for Philosophy of Science of the University of Lisbon (CFCUL) of which she is integrated member since 2006. At the CFCUL, from 2007 to 2014 she was the Head of the research group Science and Art and in 2014, she created the thematic line Science-Art-Philosophy Laboratory (SAP Lab). She supervises several doctoral theses and belongs to faculty of the International Doctoral Program "Philosophy of Science, Technology, Art and Society", in the area of "Science and Art". In parallel, she develops a career as Art Curator, having completed, in 2016, a Postgraduation in History of Art and Art Curating by the Faculty of Social and Human Sciences of the New University of Lisbon (FCSH - UNova Lisboa). As Art Curator, she has organized several exhibitions with many museums and galleries. She is also the founder and curator of the Art Gallery "Oficina Impossivel" in Lisbon and guest curator of "Coletivo a Linha".
Marta Menezes
Throughout art history, artists have continually delved into the realms of science, seeking connections and inspiration. In today's society, the intersection between art and biology has garnered significant attention, propelled by the heightened emphasis on science and technology within public discourse. This increased awareness of scientific advancements evokes a spectrum of emotions within the public consciousness, ranging from awe and hope to apprehension about potential misuse.This burgeoning awareness of biological sciences and biotechnology has profoundly influenced artists, positioning them not merely as passive observers of scientific inquiry nor as scientists themselves, but rather as active participants in an art research endeavor. This unique stance has spurred the development of innovative strategies aimed at fostering collaborative dialogue between artists and scientists, ushering in a new era of artistic practice characterized by risk-taking and exploration.
Marta de Menezes (born 1975) is a Portuguese artist, with a Degree in Fine Arts from the University of Lisbon and a MSt from the University of Oxford. De Menezes is director of Cultivamos Cultura, the leading institution devoted to experimental art in Portugal and Ectopia, dedicated to facilitate the collaborative work between artists and scientists. Marta de Menezes has worked in the intersection of art and biology since the late 90s, in the UK, Australia, the Netherlands, and Portugal, exploring the conceptual and aesthetic opportunities offered by biological sciences for visual representation in the arts.
