Marta Dias is graduated in Biology – specialty of Marine Biology and Aquaculture and obtained the PhD degree in 2020 by the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon. She is currently a post-doctoral researcher at CIIMAR. Her main research interests are diverse, including food webs, temperate and tropical marine ecology, global climate change effects, physiological stress and sustainable aquaculture. She authored 30 scientific publications in international journals.

I have a degree in Biology and Geology from the University of Minho and I’m currently doing a master’s degree in Marine Sciences – Marine Resources, with a specialization in Aquaculture and Fisheries at the Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar. I will be doing my thesis as part of the Blue Bioeconomy Pact project. My areas of interest are the welfare of fish in aquaculture, as well as increasing their immunity through nutrition.

Marta Martins has an academic background in Marine Biology (Universidade do Algarve, 2013) and Marine Biodiversity and Conservation (Universidade do Algarve, 2015). She started working at CIIMAR in 2018 as a post-grad student and is currently a PhD student in BET group. Her main reseach interests include intertidal and shallow subtidal ecology, mainly macroalgae, how climate change will impact this environments and what we can do to help their conservation.

Marta Monteiro obtained her PhD in Biology at FCUP, where she applied Fish nutrition and biotechnological tools to obtain functional ingredients based on micro- and macroalgae for aquafeeds. She is currently a post-doc researcher at CIIMAR, in the Nutrition, Growth and Quality of Fish (LANUCE), working in the development of new functional ingredients with stress mitigation properties and exploring the underlying mechanisms of fish stress response.

Marta has a MSc degree in Biology and Geology Teaching and a BSc in Biology (scientific-technological branch), both concluded at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto (FCUP). She is a PhD student in Science Teaching and Dissemination (Expertise in Science Teaching), also at FCUP. Her main research interests are science education, sustainable development, the Earth system, bioethics and geoethics teaching and learning, and promoting participatory citizenship among young people.

Marta Ribeiro is a PhD student in Biology, at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto (FCUP), developing her project at CIIMAR in the EDEC team. Her research is mainly focused on the transgenerational effects of emergent contaminants in non-target aquatic organisms. Marta has a degree in Biology, from FCUP, since 2019 and completed her master’s degree in Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, by the Institute of Biomedical Sciences Abel Salazar of the University of Porto, in 2021.

Marta Vaz Mendes graduated in Biochemistry (1997) from the University of Lisbon (Portugal) and completed her PhD degree in Plant and Microbial Biotechnology (2003) at the University of León (Spain). She completed postdoctoral projects in Spain, France and Portugal. Since 2007 she led a research team at IBMC/i3S.  She is an Invited Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Sciences and ICBAS (University of Porto) and in 2025 she joined CIIMAR as a Principal Investigator.

Throughout her career, her main scientific interest has been the molecular mechanisms governing the production of secondary metabolites in Actinobacteria. Her research aims to translate the knowledge on secondary metabolism into innovative biotechnological strategies for producing natural products.

After two years of engineering school at IMT Atlantique (France), I decided to take a gap year to have a professional experience and to learn new methods and skills in oceanography. I am currently at CIIMAR for 12 months to work with Jorge Magalhaes on Internal Waves. Our main objective is to study the impact of wind and internal waves on the mixing of the water column. At the end of my contract, I’ll be finishing my Master in physical oceanography at LOPS (France).

Martina Ilarri graduated in Biology in 2005 (UFF, Brazil), had her Master’s degree in 2008 (UFPB, Brazil) and PhD in 2012 from the Doctoral School in Marine and Environmental Science (University of Porto, Portugal). She is currently a Researcher at CIIMAR-UP, working on aquatic ecological studies. Her main research interests focus on studying the changes (taxonomical and functional diversity) associated with the introduction of invasive aquatic species at different ecological levels (populations, communities and ecosystems). In addition, she focuses on understanding changes in the functioning of aquatic communities due to the impacts of climate change and extreme weather events.

Melina Abdou is a Junior Researcher in the Endocrine Disruptors and Emerging Contaminants Team at CIIMAR. She is graduated of an Erasmus Mundus MSc of “Marine Environment and Resources” and obtained her PhD in Geochemistry and Ecotoxicology at the University of Bordeaux (2018). Her research interests focus on the understanding of trace metal biogeochemical cycles in estuarine, coastal, and marine waters under anthropogenic pressure. In particular, Technology Critical Elements such as platinum, considered as an emerging contaminant, are at the center of her research, comprising the study of their sources, reactivity, and ecotoxicological effects on living organisms.

Mena Nagy Adly Khalaf, a PhD candidate in Marine Science, Technology, and Management at the University of Porto, combines a strong foundation in bioinformatics, deep learning, and computer science. He holds both a Master’s and a Bachelor’s degree in Computers and Information (Information Systems) from Assiut University, where he graduated top of his class. His Master’s thesis, “Prediction of Molecular Compound Structures Using Deep Learning,” reflects his deep expertise in computer science, bioinformatics, and AI. His research focused on generative deep learning techniques for molecular and protein structure prediction. Currently, as a research assistant at CIIMAR, he contributes to the iCulture project by applying artificial intelligence to analyze omics data, aiming to uncover genetic mechanisms linked to seaweed adaptation and molecular production. Mena has published in peer-reviewed journals including ACS Omega and IJACSA, with a conference paper published in IEEE Xplore. He previously worked as an Assistant Lecturer at Assiut University, teaching across bioinformatics, information systems, and computer science programs. Mena also shares his expertise through the Narmer Academy YouTube channel and actively supports community initiatives in Egypt. His technical skills include Python, R, machine learning, deep learning, and various bioinformatics tools—highlighting his dedication to innovation in computational biology and sustainable marine applications.

I graduated in the year 2000 from the Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto, with a degree in Biology. I joined the group in 2002 when I started doing phytoplankton identification and enumeration. In 2005, I completed a MSc in Hydrobiology where I studied freshwater planktonic communities. Since then I’ve continued monitoring environmental samples for the presence of potentially toxic phytoplankton, determination of biovolumes and quantification of toxicity.

She has a degree in Fisheries Engineering from the State University of Western Paraná (2011), a master’s degree in Fisheries Resources and Fisheries Engineering from the same institution (2013) and a PhD in Zootechnics from the State University of Maringá (2017). He has experience in fish nutrition. She is a member of the Laboratory of Nutrition and Physiology of Aquatic Organisms at the University of Mogi das Cruzes – SP. She is currently a FAPESP Post-Doctoral Fellow researching alternative sources of fatty acids in the lipid metabolism and zootechnical performance of juvenile fish, Rachycentron canadum.

Miguel Barbosa is a Marine Biologist currently conducting research at the Instituto Português do Mar e da Atmosfera (IPMA), Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa (MARE-FCUL) and Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental (CIIMAR). He graduated in Marine Biology and Biotechnology in 2020, at the Instituto Politécnico de Leiria (ESTM-IPL). He finished his master’s degree in Microbiology in 2022, by the Instituto Superior Técnico from Universidade de Lisboa (IST), in partnership with MARE-FCUL and IPMA. Currently, he is pursuing his PhD in Marine Sciences (FCUL), studying the effect of climate change on toxic microalgae and harmful algal blooms.

Miguel Caetano is a marine chemist with scientific interests focused on the challenges posed by the changes in the biogeochemical processes induced during the Anthropocene. Its main research areas of investigation have been the interaction of pollutants (classic and emergent) between water, sediments, and aquatic organisms coupled with the early-diagenetic processes. He has participated in educating 15 young researchers and up to 80 national/international research projects and research contracts and authored>125 ISI scientific papers with >3,000 citations. He is the team leader of the Contaminant pathways and interactions with marine organisms group at the Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research and a senior researcher of the Portuguese Institute of Sea and Atmosphere. He has been a member of the ICES WGMC, MSWG and ACOM, chair of the standing committee on fisheries environment of NAFO and member of the pool of experts in the WOA II during the second cycle of the regular process of the UN.

Miguel Costa is an Environmental Engineer, having completed his MSc degree in 2017 at FEUP. Since that year, he is working as a researcher at FEUP in the areas of water resources management (especially in extreme situations of drought and scarcity and in Iberian transboundary river basins), hydrology, hydrological modeling and river rehabilitation. He is currently also a PhD student in Environmental Engineering at FEUP. Other areas of interest, in addition to those already mentioned, include: effects of climate change on water resources; nature-based solutions; fish passage devices. He also did two internships at EDP Produção.

Miguel Castro holds a bachelor’s in Genetics and Biotechnology and a master’s in Food Engineering from the University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro. In 2021, he contributed to the molecular identification of Dictyocaulus capreolus in cervids, marking a first in Portugal and resulting in his first publication. From 2022 to 2023, he researched Food Safety in Restaurants, presenting significant findings at conferences and publishing two papers as the lead author. Currently, he works with CIIMAR’s NUTRIMU Group on the Horizon 2020 project “NEOGIANT,” exploring grape extract applications as antimicrobial alternatives in aquaculture.

Miguel Maia obtained his MSc in Pharmaceutical Sciences in 2013 at the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Porto. He has worked as a Stability and Validation Specialist in the pharmaceutical industry for five years and is currently a PhD student at CIIMAR (Natural Products and Medicinal Chemistry Group). Its research project focuses on the design and synthesis of novel compounds against Alzheimer’s disease.

Miguel Santos is a professor at the Department of Biology of  the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto and the head of the Endocrine Disruptors and Emerging Contaminants Team at CIIMAR. He received his PhD in 2002 in Biology from FCUP-University of Porto with a joint supervison at the Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ). His research interests focus on the hazard assessment of endocrine disrupting chemicals and other priority and emerging contaminants.

Miguel Semedo received his PhD in Marine Sciences from the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, College of William and Mary (2019), and he is currently a junior researcher at CIIMAR. As a microbial ecologist, Miguel is interested in investigating the diversity and function of microbial communities across multiple environments and their roles in biogeochemical processes. He is especially interested in understanding the impacts of human activities and pollution on these microbial processes. For his research, he applies molecular, bioinformatic, and biogeochemical methodologies to connect the dots between microbial community composition and biological activity.

Miriam Eder is completing a master’s degree in 'Technical Environmental Management and Ecotoxicology' in Austria and is currently collaborating with CIIMAR in a study regarding the effects of microplastics in freshwater environments.

My name is Miriam Mendes, I have a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Business Administration from ISCAP. My professional experience has allowed me to develop my knowledge in this area of Human Resources where I develop my work with commitment and responsibility.

Moeketsi Lawrence Duiker is an MSc graduate from the University of Porto, FEUP, and a Ph.D. student in Civil Engineering, Hydraulics section, at the same institution. A member of CIIMAR, he focuses on coastal defense structures, integrating machine learning to enhance coastal resilience and safety.