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Rita Costa is a biomedical scientist with significant state-of-the-art expertise in lung biology and respiratory medicine. She obtained her PhD in Medical Research from the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich in 2020. Rita is currently a Postdoc at Helmholtz Munich, combining her expertise in lung biology with next generation personalized phage therapy to fight multidrug resistant bacterial infections. Her scientific achievements include 13 peer-reviewed publications: two first authorships in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (impact factor 14,2), and in the British Journal of Pharmacology (IF 9,47), and co-authorships on multiple high impact papers in prestigious journals such as Nature (IF 64,8), European Respiratory Journal (IF 33,8), and American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine (IF 24,7), among others.
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Identification

Personal identification

Full name
Rita Ribeiro da Silva Alves da Costa

Citation names

  • Costa, Rita

Author identifiers

Ciência ID
0B15-B3BA-9FDF
ORCID iD
0000-0003-0710-3611
Google Scholar ID
https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=8m4Y3JMAAAAJ&hl=pt-PT
Researcher Id
AAS-8860-2020

Email addresses

  • rita.costa@helmholtz-munich.de (Professional)

Telephones

Telephone
  • (+49) 893187 Ext.: 49831 (Professional)

Addresses

  • Ingolstädter Landstr. 1, 85764, Neuherberg, Baviera, Germany (Professional)

Websites

Knowledge fields

  • Medical and Health Sciences - Medical Biotechnology - Technologies Involving the Manipulation of Cells, Tissues, Organs or the Whole Organism
  • Natural sciences - Biological Sciences - Cell Biology
  • Natural sciences - Biological Sciences - Molecular Biology
  • Medical and Health Sciences - Basic Medicine - Immunology

Languages

Language Speaking Reading Writing Listening Peer-review
Portuguese (Mother tongue)
English Proficiency (C2) Proficiency (C2) Proficiency (C2) Proficiency (C2) Proficiency (C2)
Spanish; Castilian Proficiency (C2) Proficiency (C2) Proficiency (C2) Proficiency (C2) Proficiency (C2)
German Beginner (A1) Elementary (A2) Beginner (A1) Intermediate (B1) Beginner (A1)
Education
Degree Classification
2014 - 2020/11/05
Concluded
 Medical Research (Doktor (PhD))
Major in Lung biology and disease
Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München Medizinische Fakultät, Germany
"Therapeutic Wnt/ß-catenin signaling activation and regulation for lung repair in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease." (THESIS/DISSERTATION)
 1,42 (very good)
2009 - 2011
Concluded
 Oncologia (Mestrado)
Major in Oncologia Molecular
Universidade do Porto Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar, Portugal
"INFLUÊNCIA DOS POLIMORFISMOS DAS GLUTATIONA S-TRANSFERASES, NOS GENES GSTA1 E GSTP1, NA RESPOSTA À TERAPIA DO CANCRO DA MAMA" (THESIS/DISSERTATION)
 17
2006 - 2009
Concluded
 Biociências (Licenciatura)
Major in Microbiologia
Universidade Católica Portuguesa Escola Superior de Biotecnologia, Portugal
"Characterization of several Acinetobacter spp. strains from different origins" (THESIS/DISSERTATION)
 14
Affiliation

Science

Category
Host institution 		Employer
2019/12 - Current Postdoc (Research) Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt, Germany
Technische Universität München Institut für Virologie, Germany
2013/02 - 2014/07 Researcher (Research) Universität Zürich Schweizerisches Institut für Allergie- und Asthmaforschung, Switzerland

Others

Category
Host institution 		Employer
2014/08 - 2019/11 PhD candidate Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt, Germany
Comprehensive Pneumology Center, Germany
2010/02 - 2011/10 MSc candidate Instituto Português de Oncologia do Porto Francisco Gentil Centro de Investigação, Portugal
2009/02 - 2009/06 BSc candidate Universidade Católica Portuguesa Portuguesa Centro de Biotecnologia e Química Fina, Portugal
Outputs

Publications

Book chapter
  1. Xue, Jinling; Mirzaei, Mohammadali Khan; Costa, Rita; Smith, Sophie; Tiamani, Kawtar; Ma, TianLi; Deng, Li. "Human virome in health and disease". In Molecular Medical Microbiology, 2641-2658. Elsevier, 2024.
    10.1016/b978-0-12-818619-0.00128-3
Journal article
  1. Kawtar Tiamani; Shiqi Luo; Sarah Schulz; Jinling Xue; Rita Costa; Mohammadali Khan Mirzaei; Li Deng. "The role of virome in the gastrointestinal tract and beyond". FEMS Microbiology Reviews (2022): https://doi.org/10.1093/femsre/fuac027.
    10.1093/femsre/fuac027
  2. Rita Costa; Darcy E. Wagner; Ali Doryab; Martina M. De Santis; Kenji Schorpp; Ina Rothenaigner; Mareike Lehmann; et al. "A drug screen with approved compounds identifies amlexanox as a novel Wnt/ß-catenin activator inducing lung epithelial organoid formation". British Journal of Pharmacology 178 19 (2021): 4026-4041. https://doi.org/10.1111/bph.15581.
    10.1111/bph.15581
  3. Costa, Rita. "Inhibition of LTßR signalling activates WNT-induced regeneration in lung.". Nature (2020): https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2882-8.
    10.1038/s41586-020-2882-8
  4. Costa, Rita. "Challenges of Studying the Human Virome – Relevant Emerging Technologies". Trends in Microbiology (2020): http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tim.2020.05.021.
    10.1016/j.tim.2020.05.021
  5. Costa, Rita. "Chronic WNT/ß-catenin signaling induces cellular senescence in lung epithelial cells". Cellular Signalling (2020): http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cellsig.2020.109588.
    10.1016/j.cellsig.2020.109588
  6. Costa, Rita. "ERS International Congress, Madrid, 2019: highlights from the Basic and Translational Science Assembly". ERJ Open Research (2020): http://dx.doi.org/10.1183/23120541.00350-2019.
    10.1183/23120541.00350-2019
  7. Altunbulakli C; Costa R; Lan F; Zhang N; Akdis M; Bachert C; Akdis CA. "Staphylococcus aureus enhances the tight junction barrier integrity in healthy nasal tissue, but not in nasal polyps.". The Journal of allergy and clinical immunology (2018): http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/29518417.
    10.1016/j.jaci.2018.01.046
  8. Brandsma CA; de Vries M; Costa R; Woldhuis RR; Königshoff M; Timens W. "Lung ageing and COPD: is there a role for ageing in abnormal tissue repair?". European respiratory review : an official journal of the European Respiratory Society (2017): http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/29212834.
    10.1183/16000617.0073-2017
  9. Lehmann M; Korfei M; Mutze K; Klee S; Skronska-Wasek W; Alsafadi HN; Ota C; et al. "Senolytic drugs target alveolar epithelial cell function and attenuate experimental lung fibrosis ex vivo.". The European respiratory journal (2017): http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/28775044.
    10.1183/13993003.02367-2016
  10. Skronska-Wasek W; Mutze K; Baarsma HA; Bracke KR; Alsafadi HN; Lehmann M; Costa R; et al. "Reduced Frizzled Receptor 4 Expression Prevents WNT/ß-Catenin-driven Alveolar Lung Repair in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.". American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine (2017): http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/28245136.
    10.1164/rccm.201605-0904oc
  11. Costa R; Königshoff M. "Linking Wnt Signaling to Mucosal Inflammation.". American journal of respiratory cell and molecular biology (2017): http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/28459386.
    10.1165/rcmb.2017-0054ed
  12. Akdis M; Aab A; Altunbulakli C; Azkur K; Costa RA; Crameri R; Duan S; et al. "Interleukins (from IL-1 to IL-38), interferons, transforming growth factor ß, and TNF-a: Receptors, functions, and roles in diseases.". The Journal of allergy and clinical immunology (2016): http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/27577879.
    10.1016/j.jaci.2016.06.033
  13. Uhl FE; Vierkotten S; Wagner DE; Burgstaller G; Costa R; Koch I; Lindner M; et al. "Preclinical validation and imaging of Wnt-induced repair in human 3D lung tissue cultures.". The European respiratory journal (2015): http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/25929950.
    10.1183/09031936.00183214
Thesis / Dissertation
  1. "Therapeutic Wnt/ß-catenin signaling activation and regulation for lung repair in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.". PhD, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München Medizinische Fakultät, 2021. https://edoc.ub.uni-muenchen.de/27088/.
  2. "Influência dos Polimorfismos das Glutationa S-Transferases, nos Genes GSTA1 e GSTP1, na resposta à Terapia do Cancro da Mama". Master, Universidade do Porto Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar, 2011. https://repositorio-aberto.up.pt/bitstream/10216/57195/2/DISSERTAÃO%20MESTRADO%20ONCOLOGIA%20RITA%20COSTA.pdf.
Activities

Event organisation

Event name
Type of event (Role) 		Institution / Organization
2013/03 - 2014/03 Hosting at WIRM (2013/03 - 2014/03)
Congress (Co-organisor)
 Universität Zürich Schweizerisches Institut für Allergie- und Asthmaforschung, Switzerland

Event participation

Activity description
Type of event 		Event name
Institution / Organization
2022/07/11 - 2022/07/12 First strategic DZIF meeting.
Meeting
 Bacteriophages in Science and Clinical Use
Deutsches Zentrum für Infektionsforschung eV, Germany
2019/10 - 2019/10 Poster coordinator
Congress
 ERS Congress
European Respiratory Society, Switzerland

Association member

Society Organization name Role
2022 - Current DZIF Translational Phage Network Scientist
2019 - Current The DZL academy Fellow
2021 - 2022 The German Center for Lung Research (Deutsches Zentrum für Lungenforschung, DZL) Mentoring Class 2022, “Careers in Respiratory Medicine”

Interview (tv / radio show)

Program Topic
2022/02 - 2022/02 Vídeo promocional para as mulheres na ciência. Como são e em que trabalham as mulheres cientistas?
Distinctions

Award

2019 Best oral presentation
Gordon Research Conferences, United States
2019 Travel Grant
Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt, Germany
2016 Travel Grant
Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt, Germany

Other distinction

2016 Keynote speaker
9th European Elastin Meeting, Germany