Biomolecular Engineering Lab

At the end of July, we BIOMENG group celebrated another year together, with this year’s Summer Potluck. Thank you to our wonderful team, cheers!! ☀️

Universidade NOVA de Lisboa
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From 27th-29th July, Maria Pinho attended the 4th International Conference on Materials and Nanomaterials in Las Palmas, Canary Islands, Spain. Maria gave a poster presentation about the work she has been developing as a research assistant for the SUBTLE project entitled "Bio-based optical ionogels for anti-counterfeiting tags". The M&Ns 2026 was a great opportunity to share our results in the scope of SUBTLE project and connect with the international scientific community.

Congratulations Maria! ✨


Universidade NOVA de Lisboa
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NOVA FCT

From 7th-10th July, Catarina Faustino attended the 59th European Marine Biology Symposium in Peniche, Portugal. Catarina gave an oral presentation about the work she has been developing during her PhD entitled "The anatomy and biochemistry of squid´s camouflage and its biotechnological value", and received the award for best presentation! Her talk provided important insights into the field of marine biology and explored its value as an extraordinary source of novel compounds towards blue biotechnology innovations.

Congratulations Catarina!✨

Universidade NOVA de Lisboa
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From 28th June - 1st July, Susana Serrano attended the European Congress on Biotechnology in Antwerp, Belgium. The theme for this edition of the Congress was “Shaping tomorrow: Biotechnology for Health, Food, Energy, Environment”.
Susana gave an oral presentation entitled "Prototyping Structural and Cys-rich proteins relevant for biomaterials and biomedical application using cell-free expression systems". The ECB2026 was a great opportunity to share our results in the scope of INSPIRE project and connect with the scientific community.



Universidade NOVA de Lisboa
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UCIBIO

This past week, we had the pleasure to welcome Lawrence Honaker.

Lawrence is a visiting postdoctoral researcher and Marie Skłodowska-Curie fellow from the University of Luxembourg, working on the TECHSTILE project to produce liquid crystal-functionalized fibers which can respond to harmful stresses and conditions. In our lab, he was eager to investigate and learn about the lab's gas sensing technologies and set-ups and to apply them to the fibers he makes.

We would love to work with you again!🚀✨

Universidade NOVA de Lisboa
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University of Luxembourg

We’re excited to share Carolina Natal’s latest article, “High-Yield Production and Cost-Effective Purification of an Alkali-Resistant Hexameric Protein A Variant for Antibody Affinity Chromatography”, now published in Biotechnology Journal.

We present a scalable method for producing the antibody-binding ligand Z6AlkC, a six-repeat, alkali-resistant Protein A–derived Z domain with a terminal cysteine. The ligand was produced at high yield via extracellular secretion in bioreactors and subsequently purified by high-productivity ultradiafiltration with low water consumption.

Check out the full article: https://doi.org/10.1002/biot.70247

For more information about the PURE project, go to PURE website: https://pure-fetopen.eu/


European Research Council
UCIBIO
Universidade NOVA de Lisboa
NOVA FCT

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Taking Science to Elementary School Students 2026

Once again inspiring future scientists through hands-on learning!

We had the pleasure of working with 7th and 8th grade students at Elias Garcia School on a series of engaging and interactive science activities.

For the 7th grade class, we extracted DNA from bananas 🍌🧬 — a fun and accessible way to introduce genetics and the molecular basis of life. We also explored anti-counterfeiting tags and multiple security levels. 🏷🔦

The 8th grade students participated in a more advanced activity simulating how proteins are produced in cells. 🧪 We also introduced the basics of protein modeling and the real-world applications of biotechnology, human and animal diagnostics and material science, always with an eye on sustainability.

It was truly rewarding to see the students’ curiosity, creativity, and excitement for science!




Universidade NOVA de Lisboa
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European Research Council

It's a pleasure to announce that student Matilde Castro, from Escola Básica e Secundária Josefa de Óbidos, presented an experimental work developed within the scope of the INSPIRE project (2024.15575.PEX) at Mostra Nacional de Ciência 2026.

Matilde won the third place prize - 750€ - with the Dot Blot project as a method of identification for an osteogenic biomarker. Matilde will now represent Portugal in one of the largest competitions and science fairs in China, CASTIC (China Adolescents Science & Technology Innovation Contest), with all expenses covered by the Fundação da Juventude.

✨ Congratulations, Matilde! It was a pleasure having you with us and we wish you the best in your promising scientific career ! 🧪


Universidade NOVA de Lisboa
NOVA FCT
UCIBIO

🧪We’re excited to share Carolina Natal’s latest article, "One-pot synthesis of a small ligand for antibody purification", now published in Biotechnology and Bioengineering.

✨The authors report a rapid, one‐pot liquid‐phase chemical synthesis of a synthetic affinity ligand (B1A12A2) displaying affinity for antibody molecules, namely human IgG from plasma and IgY from crude samples, achieving antibody recoveries of 55% and 91%, respectively, with purity exceeding 86%. This streamlined workflow highlights the advantages of liquid‐phase synthesis for ligand characterization and adsorbent optimization, thus providing a versatile platform for advancing affinity purification technologies.

Check out the full article: https://doi.org/10.1002/bit.70226

For more information about the PURE project, go to PURE website: https://pure-fetopen.eu/


European Research Council
UCIBIO
Universidade NOVA de Lisboa
NOVA FCT

Welcome Likhita! ✨

Likhita Kusampudi holds a bachelor's degree in biomedical engineering from Bharath University, India. She is currently completing her master's in molecular biotechnology from Hochschule Anhalt, Germany. She worked with polymers for bone glue development as her master's thesis at the Department of Chemistry at the University of Galway, Ireland, as an Erasmus student. She will be part of INSPIRE, dedicated to the production of cell-free extracts.

Excited to have you on board, Likhita!


Universidade NOVA de Lisboa
NOVA FCT
UCIBIO