I studied Biological Sciences at the Federal University of Santa Catarina, Brazil, where I obtained her BSc. My thesis focused on the microbial photoautotrophic community in Antarctic soils. Following this, I began my MSc in Molecular and Microbial Biology at the University of the Algarve, Portugal, in 2024, and I joined the group of Conceição Egas at the Center for Neuroscience and Cell Biology (CNC) at the University of Coimbra to develop my MSc thesis. My main research topic was the production of polyhydroxyalkanoates by haloarchaea. I am currently working in the lab of Prof. Tessa Quax at the University of Groningen, the Netherlands, studying the interaction between the archaeal cell surface with viruses as a PhD researcher.

Project Title: Interaction of the archaeal cell surface with viruses

The project mainly consists of identifying surface receptors used by viruses for host-recognition and to determine the role of these viral receptors in viral genome delivery. Furthermore, it aims to measure the impact of viral presence on expression of viral receptors under laboratory conditions and the impact of viruses on expression of surface components in the environment.

My scientific interest:

My scientific interest lies in understanding the molecular interaction between viruses and the cell surface of archaea, as well as clarifying how viral genetic material is delivered into these cells.

I like to do in my free time:

Besides doing science, I am into running, cycling, swimming and photography. I also enjoy museums, travelling, trying different food and learning about different cultures.