My scientific and curricular path demonstrates my expertise in the field of Neuroscience, particularly on Neurogenetics area. My interest and curiosity in the molecular and biological basis of human diseases started very early in life, and even before finishing my Biochemistry degree in 1990, I developed a research project in the Genetics Department of Lisbon University. At that time, I also had my first research experience abroad in the Nuclear Physics Institute in Julich, where I understood how important it was gain hands-on experience in a different scientific environment. Since then, I have been self-motivated and determined to pursue a research career in human genetics. Thus, I completed my Master¿s degree in 1994 in Cell Biology, after an internship in the Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, Canada. After developing an EC funded project, under the Genome Analysis Program, I was recognized a specialist in Genetics by the Ministry of Health in Portugal in 1997. Afterwards, I moved to UK to do my PhD in Human genetics, which I completed in 2001 at the Faculty of Medicine of Newcastle University. As part of my PhD, I worked in the Institute of Pathology in Düsseldorf and also in the Human Genetics Institute in Leiden. Then, I did a postdoc at Leicester University, developing yeast-based assays to evaluate the functional analysis of mismatch repair genes involved in colorectal cancers. In 2003, I became Research Associate at Newcastle University where I stayed until returned to Portugal in 2004 to set up and coordinate the lab of the inherited diseases unit in GenoMed at IMM in Lisbon. In 2009, I moved to Coimbra and joined CNC (partner of the CIBB), first as an FCT-investigator in Human Genetics (2009) when I became the head of the Neurogenetics laboratory, and later as Invited Scientist (2014), in the CIBB¿s group of Biomarkers in Neuropsychiatric Disorders within the thematic line: Neuroscience & Disease. Thus, since 2009 I have been coordinating the Neurogenetics Laboratory in both its diagnostic and scientific research areas, in a close collaboration with CHUC¿s Neurology Service. With the genetic and genomic advances, I set up in the lab, a systematic stepwise approach, using Next-generation sequencing technology with subsequent development of custom bioinformatics pipelines for processing sequencing data. My capability to establish collaborative research, both at national and international level, led to several network collaborations, some within consortia, European Early-Onset Dementia (EU-EOD (as Coordinator of the Coimbra node) and Genetic Frontotemporal dementia Initiative (GENFI) (as Genetic guardian). In 2015, I became a Clinical Laboratory Geneticist (CLG) by the European Board of Medical Genetics, (title renewed in 2020), which consolidated my expertise as a human genetics¿ specialist. Since 2019 I have been invited to lecture in the European Course for CLGs in education, organized by the European Society of Human Genetics (ESHG). The recognition of my expertise is also patent in invitations to peer review research projects, articles for several scientific journals, and join the editorial board of Alzheimer disease and related dementias. In 2024, I was appointed as an Assistant research at CNC. Over the years, I attracted research funds at national (FCT and Patients Portuguese societies) and international level (The Michael J. FOX Foundation, UCL, Takeda Pharmaceutical Company) being in 2020 awarded of a FCT funding of 250.000¿, as Principal Investigator. Moreover, since I have been in UC, I supervised lab rotations (>20) of undergraduate students and postgraduate students, (>10 Master and 1 PhD), lectured in MSc and PhD programs and I was invited speaker in national and international courses. I was also involved in several outreach activities organized by UC and participated in patients associations. I have published 109 articles (>2300 citations) (Web of Science).