I completed in 2012 a PhD in Biosciences (Cell and Molecular Biology) at the University of Coimbra, working in the ‘Mitochondria, Metabolism & Disease’ group at CNC under the supervision of Prof. Carlos Palmeira (Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra), an expert on mitochondria. During the PhD, I visited the lab of Prof. Luca Scorrano (University of Padua, Italy) where I learned cutting-edge approaches for the study of mitochondrial biology and mitochondrial dynamics (fusion/fission). I was hired in 2013 as an Invited Assistant Professor at the University of Coimbra, teaching Cell and Molecular Biology. In 2014 I got a Postdoc fellowship in a competitive call from FCT for studying the role of miRNAs in mitochondria, namely in metabolic disease. Also, I continued working on several projects enduring in the lab: mitochondrial regulation and bioenergetics stimulation as a therapeutic strategy in hyperglycemia, obesity, metabolic syndrome and diabetes; improving mitochondria in Parkinson’s Disease (funded by MJFox Foundation); mitophagy and mitochondrial biogenesis following exposure to environmental toxicants (funded by CAPES, Brazil) or to silver nanoparticles (funded by US Aerospace R&D); mitochondrial biogenesis and beneficial effects of berberine and resveratrol/SIRT1 activation in metabolic dysfunction. In 2016, I joined Exogenus Therapeutics (Biocant Park, Cantanhede, Portugal), as an R&D scientist; this is a drug development company using exosome-based technology to develop innovative therapeutic agents. In 2018, I joined the Neuronal Signaling research group at CNC, led by Prof. Carlos Duarte (Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra). I worked on an exciting project about the role of neuronal chloride homeostasis in epilepsy (PI: Dr. Miranda Mele). From 2019 I have been invited to teach Methods in Molecular Biology at the University of Coimbra; this not only forces me to keep molecular biology concepts and methods updated but also gets me to know students who are promising scientists allowing me to train them with more enthusiasm. From 2021 I have been working on a funded project entitled ‘Regulation of mitochondrial fission by brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF): role in synaptic plasticity and in epileptogenesis’, in which I am co-PI. In the last years, additionally to working directly on the research project designing and performing experiments, I have also been much involved in training/supervising several students in the laboratory. From 2023 I am an Invited Assistant Professor at the Department of Life Sciences of the University of Coimbra, where I have been teaching biochemistry, molecular biology and neurobiology-related courses for undergrad and MSc degrees. Published a total of 34 journal articles in international peer-reviewed journals (including seven as 1st author and two as last author) and 3 book chapters (one as 1st author), reaching an H-index of 20 with 10 000+ total citations (Scopus and Web of Science). Among these are 2 highly cited papers (top 1% in the academic field). Co-PI in a project on mitochondria, BDNF and epilepsy, entitled 'Regulation of mitochondrial fission by brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF): role in synaptic plasticity and in epileptogenesis'.