Ana Rita Costa

Nerve Regeneration Group, i3S; Porto, Portugal

Ana Rita Costa initially developed her scientific career in the area of Protein Aggregation and Neurodegeneration. During her MSc (University of Coimbra) and PhD (University of Porto), she focused on understanding the enzymatic degradation of amyloid beta peptide (Abeta), which has a central role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s Disease. Ana continued her research as a postdoctoral fellow in the Christopher Dobson group (Chemistry Department, University of Cambridge, UK) and in the group of Peter Hyslop (CIMR, University of Cambridge, UK). In September 2016, Ana joined Dr Monica Sousa's Lab (i3S, University of Porto) and since then, she has been using super-resolution microscopy to understand the biogenesis and dynamics of the membrane periodic skeleton of the axon.

Tiago Silva

Neurolipids Group, i3S; Porto; Portugal

Tiago Silva obtained a BSc and MSc in Biochemistry at the Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto. In November 2017, Tiago Silva obtained a PhD in Biomedical Sciences from the ICBAS, University of Porto. His research as a PhD student aimed at determining the mechanisms behind the peroxisomal disorder Rhizomelic Chondrodysplasia Punctata (RCDP), using mice as models for the disease. The research resulted in a major paradigm shift in the understanding that plasmalogens, a class of ether-phospholipids defective in RCDP patients, are essential for the correct activation of AKT at the plasma membrane. The continued interest in the biological impact of lipids in the nervous system also allowed for the elucidation that myelin-derived lipids effect regeneration and identified cholesterol and sphingomyelin as novel myelin-associated inhibitors of axon regeneration. Since December 2017, Tiago Silva has been a Postdoc at the Neurolipid Biology group at IBMC and I3S. His major achievements include: determining that plasmalogens are crucial for neuronal excitability and the establishment of functional neuromuscular junctions, identifying a novel plasmalogen precursor that can restore plasmalogen levels in nervous tissue, and determining that profilin-mediated increases in cytoskeleton dynamics improves the maturation of neuromuscular junctions during regeneration. Tiago Silva published 7 articles in top-ranked journals, including The Journal of Investigation, Brain Pathology, and Molecular Neurobiology, with 198 citations and an h-index of 6. At the Host, Tiago Silva holds institutional activities as the elected representative of the Junior Postdocs at the IBMC's Executive Council and the i3S's Advisory Committee.

Amr Abouelezz

Endocytic Cytoskeleton Lab, Helsinki Institute of Life Sciences, Helsinki, Finland

Dr. Abouelezz earned his PhD in Pirta Hotulainen’s lab in 2020, where he studied the structure and dynamics of the actin cytoskeleton in the axon initial segment (AIS). His work showed that actin forms stable filaments in the AIS, and that tropomyosin is part of the periodic membrane skeleton, where it is necessary for maintaining its structure and function. He is currently a post-doctoral researcher in the Institute of Biotechnology in Helsinki, Finland, where he is studying the endocytic cytoskeleton.

Sebastian Dupraz

Axonal Growth and Regeneration Lab, Deutsches Zentrum für Neurodegenerative Erkrankungen (DZNE), Bonn, Germany

After obtaining his degree in Chemistry and Biotechnology from the National University of in in 2004, Sebastian immediately started his path in the basic sciences, joining Quiroga’s lab, where he completed his PhD and a short postdoc, studying the biology and functions of the IGF-1R pathway as regulator of plasmalemmal expansion during development and regeneration of neuronal systems. Fascinated by how chemical signatures in the cellular cytoskeleton instruct cellular behaviors, Sebastian then joined Frank Bradke’s lab at the DZNE in Bonn, Germany in 2012, where he has been investigating the role of Rho GTPases in the establishment of neuronal polarity and axonal growth as well as increasing his expertise in the biology of neuronal regeneration. Currently, Sebastian is interested in understanding how the activity of particular cytoskeleton regulators present at the pre- and post-synapse, as well as in synapse-associated non-neuronal cells, are simultaneously coordinated to fine-tune synaptic strength.