(Chemical) Bonding is what makes life possible

I got my BSc (2011) and my MSc (2013) Degrees in Chemistry at the Faculty of Sciences University of Porto (FCUP). From 2013 to 2016, I was a pre-doctoral research assistant in Paula Gomes Lab (http://www.fc.up.pt/pessoas/pgomes/), where I was devoted to FCT-funded research projects that combined computational and experimental approaches towards the rescuing of classical antimalarial drugs (PTDC/QUI-QUI/116864/2010 and EXPL/QEQ-COM/0927/2013). In February 2017, I was awarded a PhD grant and engaged in a doctoral project dedicated to the development of new peptide/ionic liquid-based constructs to tackle complicated skin infections. During this period, I was also a team member in project ANTINFECT (PTDC/NAN-MAT/31781/2017), aimed at progressing antimicrobial peptide-grafted biomaterials for bioengineering approaches to tackle infected wounds. I obtained my Doctoral degree in late December 2021 after an interruption due to maternity leave.
To date, I have co-authored 20 papers, 10 of which as first author. I have also participated in international and national scientific conferences, presenting 13 posters and 12 oral communications including 1 webinar for the Italian Peptide Society. I have participated as a supervisor team member of 3 students with master’s and bachelor’s degrees and have mentored ungraduated students.
Currently, I am a contracted post-doctoral researcher at LAQV- REQUIMTE with an awarded Junior Researcher Position by the Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia, through the highly competitive Portuguese Individual Call to Scientific Employment Stimulus program, in 2022, to explore the project “PEP-IL-SKIN: Peptide and Ionic Liquids for topical treatment of complicated skin and soft tissue infections”. Due to the significant results obtained, the team has a pending patent (Publication Number WO/2023/248196). I am also a member of a recently approved cost action SNOOPY - Searching for Nanostructured or pOre fOrming Peptides for therapY (OC-2023-1-26499).