University of Algarve

Translational neuroscience

Cell Biology

Ageing

Neurodegeneration

The Chromosome Segregation in Disease Laboratory investigates the canonical and non-canonical functions of mitotic proteins and their contribution to human disease. We study how proteins classically associated with chromosome segregation acquire additional roles, and how their dysfunction drives rare neurodevelopmental disorders and cancer.

Biorhythms underlie many aspects of our lives ensuring that all cellular processes occur in their optimal temporal niche. Molecular oscillators with circadian or ultradian (<24h) rhythms have been independently characterized in multiple organisms/cells and revealed to be crucial timekeeping mechanisms operating during DEVELOPMENT, AGEING AND DISEASE. Our group studies one such oscillator – the EMBRYO MOLECULAR CLOCK (EC) – which regulates the periodic formation of the vertebrate embryo axial skeleton precursors.

The overall objectives of the Epigenetics and Human Disease Laboratory are to analyze epigenetic signatures and explore their potential role in aging, multiorgan dysfunction syndromes and cancer development, adding diagnostic and prognostic value in order to help designing therapeutic approaches in an era of personalized medicine. The work is primarily focused on human cancer and sepsis with emphasis on basic research on human tissue and cells with a strong clinical association.

Our research focuses on understanding the molecular and cellular mechanisms that drive cancer stemness, with a particular emphasis on brain tumors. We investigate how cancer stem cell-like populations interact with the tumor microenvironment to promote tumor growth, invasion, metastasis, and resistance to therapy. By combining multi-omics, genetic engineering, iPSC-derived organoid models, and advanced imaging, our lab aims to identify novel biomarkers for personalized medicine and uncover new therapeutic targets.

The Thyroid Hormones in Development and Ageing group, led by Marco António Campinho at the Algarve Biomedical Centre–Research Institute (ABC-Ri), Universidade do Algarve, investigates the molecular and cellular mechanisms by which thyroid hormones (TH) regulate vertebrate development, using zebrafish as its primary biomedical model.

https://abcri.pt/stem-cells-biology-lab/

Immunology and Lysosomal Storage Diseases group focuses on the field of Lipid Immunology, with a particular interest in the role of sphingolipids in modulating CD1-restricted T lymphocytes, including invariant Natural Killer T (iNKT) cells. A central aim of the group is to uncover how lipid-mediated immune modulation contributes to the pathophysiology of Lysosomal Storage Diseases, particularly sphingolipidoses such as Acid Sphingomyelinase Deficiency, Gaucher disease, and Fabry disease.