LEGE-CC TEAM

Meet the team

Vitor Vasconcelos

BSc in Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto | MSc in Applied Ecology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto | PhD in Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto

And all started with the first Microcystis aeruginosa strains isolated since 1991 from several water bodies in Portugal during my PhD thesis in Toxicology of cyanobacteria at the Faculty of Sciences of Porto University, with some work done also at the University of Helsinki (Finland) and at the Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio (USA). My research interests were initially the toxins produced by cyanobacteria and their impact in environmental and human health and resulted in the first Monitoring Program of Toxic Cyanobacteria in Portugal together with the General Directorate of Health. But cyanobacteria produce much more than just toxins and lately my research interests also deal with unraveling bioactive compounds produced by cyanobacteria using genomic, proteomic and bioassay guided approaches. The Blue Biotechnology and Ecotoxicology Culture Collection has expanded to more genera, species and environments (marine, brackish and freshwater, soil), and I am interested to find new bioactive compounds with pharmaceutical, cosmeceutical, nutraceutical and antifouling properties.

Raquel Silva

BSc in Applied Biology, University of Minho | MSc Molecular Biology, Biotechnology and Bioentrepreneurship in Plants, University of Minho | Pos-Graduated in Quality Control, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Porto

Born in Madeira and living in Braga, I initiated my academic path at University of Minho, where I completed my BSc degree in Applied Biology (2015). Having developed particular interest on the medicinal uses of plant bioactive compounds, I enrolled the master course in Molecular Biology, Biotechnology and Bioentrepreneurship in Plants, in University of Minho (2018). In 2017 I took part of the ERASMUS+ program and initiated my master thesis in the Department of Biosciences of Università degli Studi di Milano. During this project I had the opportunity to improve techniques including in vitro culture, genetics and transcript/protein analyses and also computational/statistics among other molecular and biochemical approaches. I initiated my professional path at CIIMAR in 2019 where I integrated LEGE-CC team mainly responsible for maintenance on a molecular level with the identification of strains. Currently I work as the Curator of the Blue Biotechnology and Ecotoxicology Culture Collection (LEGE-CC). My job within the culture collection is to manage the team and assure the maintenance of the collection, legislation related issues such as Nagoya Protocol, management of LEGE-CC database and website. I also contribute to increase the biodiversity by isolating and identifying new strains of microalgae, mainly cyanobacteria. I am also a collaborator in the Consortium of Portuguese BlueBiobank.

Guilherme Scotta Hentschke

BSc in Biological Sciences, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM) | MSc in Botanic, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) | PhD in Botanic Biodiversity, Instituto de Botânica de São Paulo (IBt)

Born in Cachoeira do Sul, Brazil, in november 1982. In 2007, I have graduated in Biological Sciences in Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM). During this period, I have worked with phytoplankton from freshwater systems, with main focus on green algae. In 2009, I completed my master degree in Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), working with Chlorococcales from the freshwater Laguna dos Patos, in Brazil. In 2014, I obtained my PhD title in Botanic Biodiversity, with emphasis in cyanobacterial taxonomy, at Instituto de Botânica de São Paulo (IBt). My thesis encompassed primarily a taxonomical study of the terrestrial cyanobacteria from coastal regions of the Atlantic Rainforest, São Paulo, Brazil. Furthermore, I have tested the antioxidant potential of the respective isolate strains. I also have teached from 2014 to 2018, for medical sciences undergraduation courses at Universidade Luterana do Brasil (ULBRA) – campus Cachoeira do Sul, and I worked at the same place as Research Coordinator. During 2019, I have been a Post-Doctoral student in European Blue Biobank (EBB) project. Currently I work at CIIMAR and LEGE-CC as taxonomist of Cyanobacteria and microalgae.

Carlos Pinheiro

BSc in Biology, University of Aveiro | MSc in Applied Biology, University of Aveiro, with specialization in Toxicology and Ecotoxicology

Originally from Amarante, I completed a degree in Biology at University of Aveiro (4 years). In 2009, I have joined to the Laboratory of Ecotoxicology Genomics and Evolution (LEGE) research group, nowadays designated as Blue Biotechnology and Ecotoxicology (BBE), to do my academic internship (1 year) focused on the “Effects of cyanobacterial extracts and pure toxins on the growth of microalgae”, under the supervision of the Doctor Vitor Vasconcelos (BBE) and Doctor Susana Loureiro (CESAM & Department of Biology, University of Aveiro). During the internship, I had the opportunity to work with cyanobacterial strains, their cyanotoxins (namely, microcystin-LR and cylindrospermopsin) and possible implications to the aquatic environment. With this internship, my research interest in toxins produced by cyanobacteria and their impact in aquatic environmental health had grown and, therefore, in 2010 I decided to continue in this research area and initiate my master thesis intitled as “Joint toxicity effects of cyanotoxins and chemical compounds”, focused on binary chemical mixtures between cyanotoxins and naturally occurring chemicals such as metals and pesticides. In 2012, I completed my master’s degree in Applied Biology (2 years), with specialization in Toxicology and Ecotoxicology, under the supervision of the Doctor Vitor Vasconcelos (BBE) and Doctor Susana Loureiro (CESAM & Department of Biology, University of Aveiro). Currently, I am working as a technician on Blue Biotechnology and Ecotoxicology – Culture Collection (LEGE-CC) giving technical support on the maintenance and development of the collection by isolating and identifying new strains of microalgae and cyanobacteria using molecular tools.