Publication date
N EI 2024

The European Researchers' Night, an Europe-wide public event, which displays the diversity of science and its impact on citizens' daily lives in fun, inspiring ways, will take place on Friday 27 September 2024.

 

UCIBIO will be in the European Researchers Night with various activities developed by UCIBIO researchers at the National Museum of Natural History and Science:

 

 

Bioeconomy in Action: Transforming Waste into Valuable Products

Researchers: Cristiana Torres, Joana Fradinho, Mónica Carvalheira - Biochemical Engineering Lab

 

Have you ever thought about all the "waste" that is generated daily on our planet? However, some of these discarded products can be turned into valuable items. This is called the Circular Bioeconomy. To achieve this, we can rely on the help of microorganisms to transform these residues into products like biopolymers, bioplastics, biofuels, and biofertilizers. These products are valuable because they help to solve environmental problems and contribute to a sustainable future. By visiting our activity, you will be able to see examples of these products, learn about the production process, and participate in a hands-on activity where biopolymer spheres, emulsions, and more will be made. Come explore, learn, and get hands-on with us! Together, we can make a difference and promote a more sustainable world. We look forward to see you!

 

 

Proteins for a Sustainable Future

Ana Cecília Roque, Bárbara Diogo, Carina Esteves, Ana Margarida Dias, Susana Palma, Cátia Soares, Inês Padrão, Catarina Domingos, Carolina Natal, Ana Spencer, Afonso Eva, Catarina Faustino, Carlos Costa, Rita Faísca, Susana Fernandes, Petra Albuquerque, Hakan Onur, Jessica Rodrigues, Arménio Barbosa - Biomolecular Engineering Lab

 

Did you know that amino acids are the basic unit of any protein?
Proteins are molecules present in all living beings. There are countless proteins in the world with varied functions and there are many more to discover. It is even possible to produce proteins in the laboratory to make new sustainable materials. Come to our booth and meet some proteins!
We are going to show how protein-based materials can have the ability to smell, using the electronic nose that we have developed in our Laboratory, the Biomolecular Engineering Group at FCT-NOVA. Did you know that food freshness can be monitored through odors? And that some diseases have associated odors? Our goal is that this electronic nose will one day help prevent food waste and diagnose diseases more quickly.
Another great use of proteins is the production of medicines. Biological medicines, or biopharmaceuticals, often have their origin in proteins. Before reaching you, these medicines have to be produced and purified. We will teach you how the purification of a biopharmaceutical works and how to make it more sustainable.

 

 

Seeing the invisible: Overcoming global biological challenges with Cryo-Electron Microscopy

Ana Luísa Carvalho, Guilherme Alves, Hartmut Luecke, Maria João Romão, Vanessa Cabral - XTAL Macromolecular Crystallography Laboratory and CryoEM@NOVA: Structural Biology and Drug Discovery Lab

 

The CryoEM@NOVA research group is dedicated to advancing the field of structural biology, with a particular focus on the study of membrane proteins and their roles in cellular functions, as well as the innovative application of structure-based drug discovery through cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM). Our core objectives include the establishment of a sustainable cryo-EM infrastructure to enhance sample preparation and processing efficiencies, creating a comprehensive knowledge and training hub to disseminate expertise in cryo-EM techniques, and fostering a critical mass of researchers engaged in cryo-EM studies. Additionally, we aim to cultivate strategic partnerships that can amplify our research impact and collaborate on groundbreaking projects. Our goal is to contribute to the development of novel therapies targeting the mechanisms underlying carcinogenic processes and human infectious diseases, thereby addressing some of the most pressing health challenges of our time.

 

Sugars: Friends or Foes?

Benedita Pinheiro, Angelina Palma, Filipa Trovão, Ana Benavente, Caleb Juchem, Helena Coelho, Filipa Marcelo, Alicia Candeias, Carlos Rodrigues, Ana Santos, Daniela Tomás, João Carrilho - Functional Glycobiology Lab and (Bio)molecular Structure and Interactions by NMR Lab

 

GLYCOtwinning is a project whose objective is to build a training network to advance research in Glycosciences at the Applied Biomolecular Sciences Unit of the Faculty of Science and Technology of the NOVA University of Lisbon (UCIBIO NOVA) through synergies with first-class partners in Europe (Imperial College, LUMC and CICbioGUNE).

We are committed to understanding the protein-glycan (carbohydrate, sugar) interactions essential in cell-cell, symbiont-host or parasite-host interactions. Studies of these protein-glycan interactions enable the development of new glycan-based therapies.

Research in Glycosciences has an integrative approach, moving from chemistry to microbiology and immunology to biomedicine. We use glycan microarrays to identify functional glycan structures for proteins; structural biology to understand, at the atomic level, how proteins with different origins - immune system, human microbiome and pathogenic organisms - recognize different glycan structures; cellular assays for understanding the impact of these interactions at cell  level. This fundamental knowledge is crucial for the development of new therapies and diagnostic tools.

In this European researchers' night, we will demonstrate the importance of glycans in health in a fun and educational way. We will display examples of tools used in our laboratories. We will also have an interactive game and several educational videos to disseminate the importance and basic foundations of glycobiology.

 

 

The Portuguese Ocean in science and biotechnology

Ana Rodrigo, Marielena D’Ambrósio, Inês Cabral, Pedro M. Costa, Cátia Gonçalves, Carolina Madeira, Inês Padrão, Amanda Rodrigues, Catarina Faustino - SeaTox Lab

 

Located between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic, the Portuguese ocean benefits from an extraordinary biodiversity. Its potential goes beyond fishery and aquaculture. In fact, marine biodiversity can teach us greatly about pollution, climate change and mechanisms by which organisms have to cope with parasites and wounds, as an example. The study of marine animals has direct implications for human well-being, from ecosystems integrity until the development of new pharmaceuticals and therapies. This is the foundation of Marine Biotechnology. We intend to show the potential of marine biodiversity from our coastline and how gene and cell research pushes the future of biotechnology. We are going to show examples of microcosmos in aquariums to demonstrate organisms with biotechnological and biomedical interest, mainly invertebrates; histology and cytology studies using multimedia material and microscope; and interactive games like puzzles to captivate younger audiences.

 

What is an enzyme? Where do we use enzymes? Meet the enzyme that can help in the preservation of the ozone layer. Enzymes as new drug targets.

Sofia Pauleta, Marta Carepo, Daniela Barreiro, Pedro Bragança, Ricardo Oliveira, Carolina Luciano, Anita Leitão - Microbial Stress Lab (in collaboration with researchers from LAQV)

 

Enzymes catalyze several reactions, being essential to the Life of all living organisms. In the experiments that you will carry out, you will identify the action of enzymes that are involved in the digestion of food and are used in biological washing powders (lower use of energy and less pollutants). Nitrous oxide is responsible for the destruction of the ozone layer and has a greenhouse gas capacity 300 times greater than CO2. This gas is released into the atmosphere due to anthropogenic activities (industry, transport), as well as intensive agriculture using inorganic fertilizers. In these experiments you will get acquainted with the only enzyme that can reduce nitrous oxide to molecular nitrogen, nitrous oxide reductase. You will get to know its colors, associated with different forms of the enzyme and its three-dimensional structure. You can also do experiments where the marine bacterium that produces it will reduce nitrite to molecular nitrogen.
Climate change has an impact on antimicrobial resistance and new target, as metalloenzymes, are being discovered to target bacteria and viruses.

 

Studying proteins in 3D can help reduce atmospheric CO2

Maria João Romão, Ana Luísa Carvalho, Cristiano Mota, Teresa Santos Silva, Guilherme Vilela-Alves, Carolina Videira, Guilherme Oliveira - XTAL Macromolecular Crystallography Laboratory 

 

The Macromolecular Crystallography Group (XTAL) is a research lab of the Applied Biomolecular Sciences Unit (UCIBIO), a research unit of the NOVA FCT.
We use various biochemical and biophysical methods to study proteins, isolated or in complex with other molecules, including drugs, metals, and carbohydrates. We have a strong internationally recognized expertise in the functional and structural characterization of proteins from different organisms of nutritional, biomedical, pharmaceutical and biotechnological importance.

We use state-of-the-art methodologies, such as X-ray crystallography, SAXS and CryoEM, to study macromolecular complexes that function as nanomachines. The “visualization” we achieve, with atomic detail, is crucial to understanding how different molecules behave and recognize other molecules in the cellular environment.
In the various activities we propose, we will show protein crystals and how we arrive at their three-dimensional structure in atomic detail. We will also describe a project whose aim is to study and optimize an enzyme that will be used as a biocatalyst to capture CO2 from the Earth's atmosphere.
 

 

The ice cream that won't melt

Ana Lourenço (LAQV); Bruno Leite (LAQV); Mário Diniz (UCIBIO) - BioTox Lab

 

In this activity, you'll discover an ice cream that doesn't melt by encapsulating it with alginate, bringing science to gastronomy.
This activity also aims to draw attention to the specific food needs of vulnerable populations.

Ice Cream formulation: 
Yogurt ice cream with fig jam (gelano)
Toppings
⁃ False honey caviar
(encapsulation using alginate)
⁃ Carob marzipan with almond powder
(tapioca maltodextrin)
⁃ Muscat wine fluid gel (xanthan)