Ana Rita Pimenta Falcão Marques (CC17-1A14-FE62)

Curriculum Vitae

Ana Rita Pimenta Falcão Marques

Since my early days as a student I was puzzled and fascinated about the complexity of cells and how they would coordinate to build different organisms and accomplish such diverse functions in nature. This led me to take a degree in Biochemistry (Universidade de Évora). In my early scientific career, I worked two years in the field of microalgae biotechnology (Universidade do Algarve). I further shifted my interests to Development Biology. During my PhD, I focused on understating how different aspects of the cell cycle influence the development of a multicellular organism. I studied the influence of N-Alpha-Terminal acetyltransferases in cell cycle. I was supervised by Dr. Rui Martinho (IGC). I am currently a postdoc at the Cell Cycle Regulation lab supervised by Dr. Bettencourt-Dias M (IGC). Here I have studied centrosome stability using the knowledge I gathered during my PhD in Drosophila genetics. I have always been interested on how the cell cycle and the cytoskeleton are regulated in the context of development. As a Post-Doc I studied the mechanism responsible for centriole disappearance before meiotic division in the female germline, which ensures paternal inheritance of this structure. The results from this study showed the existence of a program that assures centriole maintenance, which is down-regulated in the female germline thus leading to centriole loss. In revealing this mechanism we: a) answered for the first time an old and interesting question, b) we challenge the view that centrioles are intrinsically stable structures and c) we showed novel and general functions for Polo kinase and the pericentriolar matrix (PCM) in centriole maintenance in eggs and somatic cells, highlighting the generality of this mechanism. This work leaded to the publication of an article in Science Journal where I am a main author. Moreover, it opened several avenues, some of which I have perused. My future research interests are mainly focused on understanding how the microtubule (MT) cytoskeleton and it´s players are regulated in order to give rise to different cell types which accommodate specific functions throughout development.

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Identification

Personal identification

Full name: Ana Rita Pimenta Falcão Marques

Citation names

Marques, Ana
Pimenta-Marques, A

Author identifiers

Ciência ID: CC17-1A14-FE62
ORCID iD: 0000-0001-6318-3922

Email addresses

ana.pmarques@nms.unl.pt (Professional)

Telephones

Telephone

214407925 (Professional)

Addresses

Instituto Gulbenkian da Ciência. Rua da Quinta Grande, 2780-156, Oeiras, Oeiras, Portugal (Professional)

Websites

https://nms.unl.pt/research/research-groups/ (Professional)

Knowledge fields

Natural sciences - Biological Sciences - Developmental Biology

Languages

Language	Speaking	Reading	Writing	Listening
English	Proficiency (C2)	Proficiency (C2)	Proficiency (C2)	Proficiency (C2)
Portuguese	Proficiency (C2)	Proficiency (C2)	Proficiency (C2)	Proficiency (C2)
Spanish; Castilian	Beginner (A1)	Intermediate (B1)	Beginner (A1)	Beginner (A1)

Education

	Degree	Classification
2012/02/01 - 2018/09/30 Concluded	Pós-Doutoramento - Centriole number regulation in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster (SFRH/BPD/79680/2011) (Pós-doutoramento) Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal
2011/09/16 Concluded	Ph.D. in Developmental Biology (Doutoramento) Universidade Nova de Lisboa Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Portugal "Mitosis and Protein N-alpha-Terminal-Acetylation" (THESIS/DISSERTATION)	Aprovado com Distinção e Louvor (unanimidade)
2003/09 Concluded	Bioquímica (Licenciatura) Universidade de Évora, Portugal "Identification of genes adjacent to the gene of flavoredoxin in the bacteria Desulfovibrio gigas" (THESIS/DISSERTATION)	15/20

Affiliation

Science

	Category Host institution	Employer
2021/10/01 - 2027/09/30	Principal Investigator (Research)	iNOVA4Health, Portugal
	Universidade Nova de Lisboa Faculdade de Ciências Médicas, Portugal (...)
2018/10/01 - 2021/09/30	Postdoc (Research)	Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian, Portugal
	Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal
2012/02/01 - 2018/09/30	Postdoc (Research)	Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal
	Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal
2007/01/01 - 2011/09/15	Researcher (Research)	Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, Portugal
	Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal
2005/01/01 - 2005/12/31	Research Trainee (Research)	Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal

2003/12 - 2005/12/30	Research Trainee (Research)	Universidade do Algarve, Portugal
	Universidade do Algarve - Campus de Gambelas, Portugal

Others

	Category Host institution	Employer
2016 - 2021	Team member within the ERC Consolidator Grant: Mechanisms of centriole inheritance and Maintenance (ERC-2015-CoG)	European Research Council, Belgium
	Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal
2006 - 2006	Team member within the project Marie Curie International Reintegration Grant 029165	Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal
	Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal
2003 - 2003	Team member within the project ALGINET QLK-CT-2002-021322 (European Union)	Universidade do Algarve, Portugal

2002 - 2002	Team member within the Project INTERREG IIIB 159 SAL - Atlantic Salt Pans	Universidade do Algarve, Portugal

Projects

Grant

	Designation	Funders
2022/01/01 - 2024/03/14	Microtubule organization in human oocytes EXPL/MED-OUT/0972/2021 Principal investigator iNOVA4Health, Portugal	Associação para a Inovação e Desenvolvimento da FCT Ongoing
2018/10/01 - 2021/09/30	Regulation of microtubule organizing centers during development PTDC/BIA-BID/32225/2017 Principal investigator Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal	Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia Ongoing

Contract

	Designation	Funders
2018/10/01 - Current	CENTRIOLE NUMBER REGULATION IN THE FRUIT FLY DROSOPHILA MELANOGASTER GC-DL57NT-22 Post-doc Fellow Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal	Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia Ongoing
2012/02/01 - 2018/09/30	Centriole number regulation in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster SFRH/BPD/79680/2011 Post-doc Fellow Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal	Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia Concluded
2007/01/01 - 2011/12/31	DE NOVO FORMATION OF AN EPITHELIUM DURING DROSOPHILA BLASTODERM CELLULARIZATION: A GENETIC AND BIOCHEMICAL APPROACH SFRH/BD/28767/2006 PhD Student Fellow Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal	Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia
2006/01/01 - 2006/12/31	Characterization of mutants defective for somatic cellularization during Drosophila melanogaster early embryonic development 029165 Research Fellow Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal	EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions Concluded
2003/12 - 2005/02	SAL - Salinas do Atlântico. Recovery of the identity of Atlantic salt pans (salinas). Recovery and promotion of the biological, economical, and cultural potential of humid coastal areas. INTERREG IIIB 159 SAL - Atlantic Salt Pans Research Fellow Universidade do Algarve Centro de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Portugal	Concluded
2003/03 - 2005/02	Microalgae as cell factories for chemical and biochemical productions. ALGINET QLK-CT-2002-021322 Research Fellow Universidade do Algarve Centro de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Portugal	Concluded
2003/03 - 2005/02	Microalgae as cell factories for chemical and biochemical productions. ALGINET QLK-CT-2002-021322	N/A

Other

	Designation	Funders
2016 - Current	Mechanisms of centriole inheritance and Maintenance ERC-2015-CoG Post-doc Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal	European Research Council Ongoing
2008 - 2010	Caracterização da segregação da linha germinal durante o desenvolvimento embrionário de Drosophila melanogaster. PPCDT/DG/BIA/82013/2006 Researcher Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal	Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia Concluded
2008 - 2010	Caracterização dos mecanismos moleculares responsáveis pela indução de transcrição zigótica após a fertilização do oócito. PTDC/BIA-BCM/69256/2006 Researcher	Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia

Outputs

Publications

Journal article

Ana Pimenta-Marques; Tania Perestrelo; Patricia Reis-Rodrigues; Paulo Duarte; Ana Ferreira-Silva; Mariana Lince-Faria; Mónica Bettencourt-Dias. "Ana1/CEP295 is an essential player in the centrosome maintenance program regulated by Polo kinase and the PCM". EMBO Reports (2024): https://doi.org/10.1038/s44319-023-00020-6.
10.1038/s44319-023-00020-6
Pimenta-Marques, A. "Quick guide on PCM". Current Biology (2020):
In press
Werner, S.; Pimenta-Marques, A.; Bettencourt-Dias, M.. "Maintaining centrosomes and cilia". Journal of Cell Science 130 22 (2017): 3789-3800. http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-85034073416&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
10.1242/jcs.203505
Pimenta-Marques, A.; Bento, I.; Lopes, C.A.M.; Duarte, P.; Jana, S.C.; Bettencourt-Dias, M.. "A mechanism for the elimination of the female gamete centrosome in Drosophila melanogaster". Science 353 6294 (2016): http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84974602778&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
10.1126/science.aaf4866
Cunha-Ferreira, I.; Bento, I.; Pimenta-Marques, A.; Jana, S.C.; Lince-Faria, M.; Duarte, P.; Borrego-Pinto, J.; et al. "Regulation of Autophosphorylation Controls PLK4 Self-Destruction and Centriole Number". Current Biology (2013): http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84886825785&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
10.1016/j.cub.2013.09.037
Guilgur, L.G.; Prudêncio, P.; Ferreira, T.; Pimenta-Marques, A.R.; Martinho, R.G.. "Drosophila aPKC is required for mitotic spindle orientation during symmetric division of epithelial cells". Development 139 3 (2012): 503-513. http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84855420819&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
10.1242/dev.071027
van Damme, P.; Hole, K.; Pimenta-Marques, A.; Helsens, K.; Vandekerckhove, J.; Martinho, R.G.; Gevaert, K.; Arnesen, T.. "NatF contributes to an evolutionary shift in protein N-terminal acetylation and is important for normal chromosome segregation". PLoS Genetics 7 7 (2011): http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-79960946480&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
10.1371/journal.pgen.1002169
Ramos, A.A.; Marques, A.R.; Rodrigues, M.; Henriques, N.; Baumgartner, A.; Castilho, R.; Brenig, B.; Varela, J.C.. "Molecular and functional characterization of a cDNA encoding 4-hydroxy-3-methylbut-2-enyl diphosphate reductase from Dunaliella salina". Journal of Plant Physiology 166 9 (2009): 968-977. http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-67349093526&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
10.1016/j.jplph.2008.11.008
Ramos, A.; Coesel, S.; Marques, A.; Rodrigues, M.; Baumgartner, A.; Noronha, J.; Rauter, A.; Brenig, B.; Varela, J.. "Isolation and characterization of a stress-inducible Dunaliella salina Lcy-ß gene encoding a functional lycopene ß-cyclase". Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology 79 5 (2008): 819-828. http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-46549089329&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
10.1007/s00253-008-1492-4
Pimenta-Marques, A.; Tostões, R.; Marty, T.; Barbosa, V.; Lehmann, R.; Martinho, R.G.. "Differential requirements of a mitotic acetyltransferase in somatic and germ line cells". Developmental Biology 323 2 (2008): 197-206. http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-54849414607&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
10.1016/j.ydbio.2008.08.021
Broco, M.; Marques, A.; Oliveira, S.; Rodrigues-Pousada, C.. "Characterisation of the 11 Kb DNA region adjacent to the gene encoding Desulfovibrio gigas flavoredoxin". DNA Sequence - Journal of DNA Sequencing and Mapping 16 3 (2005): 207-216. http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-24044519688&partnerID=MN8TOARS.
10.1080/10425170500088296

Preprint

Ana Pimenta-Marques; Tania Perestrelo; Patricia Rodrigues; Paulo Duarte; Mariana Lince-Faria; Mónica Bettencourt-Dias. "Ana1/CEP295 is an essential player in the centrosome maintenance program regulated by Polo kinase". 2022. https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.04.06.487296.
10.1101/2022.04.06.487296

Activities

Oral presentation

	Presentation title	Event name Host (Event location)
2022/06/08	Selected to attend and give a talk (Ana1/CEP295 is an essential player in the centrosome maintenance program regulated by Polo kinase) at the EMBO meeting: Microtubules: from atoms to complex systems.	EMBO meeting - Microtubules: from atoms to complex systems. European Molecular Biology Laboratory, EMBL, Heidelberg (Heidelberg, Germany)
2019/04/30	Invited lecture at the Chronic Diseases Research Centre of the NOVA University of Lisbon (Portugal). Title: Reshaping of the microtubule cytoskeleton along development	Invited seminar CEDOC – Chronic Disease Research Center (Lisbon, Portugal)
2017	Invited to give a talk about my work on Centriole stability at the Biochemical meeting of Universidade de Évora.	Biochemical meeting of University of Évora Universidade de Évora (Évora, Portugal)
2016/03	Invited to give a talk about my work on Centriole elimination in Drosophila oogenesis at the Biochemical meeting of Universidade de Évora. Évora, Portugal.	Universidade de Évora
2015	Selected to give a talk (Centriole elimination in Drosophila melanogaster oocytes) at the 2015 Portuguese Drosophila meeting.	2015 - Portuguese Drosophila meeting - DrosTuga (Portugal)
2013/03	Selected to attend and give a talk (Centrosome disappearance in Drosophila oogenesis) at the IRB Barcelona BioMed Conference on "The microtubule cytoskeleton in development and disease".	The microtubule cytoskeleton in development and disease IRB Barcelona - Institute for Research in Biomedicine (Barcelona, Spain)
2007/12	Selected to give a talk (Differential Requirements for mitotic sister-chromatid cohesion in the soma and in the germ-line embryonic development) at the Portuguese Drosophila meeting.	2007 - Drosophila Portuguese meeting - DrosTuga. Instituto de Biologia Molecular e Celular (IBMC) (Porto, Portugal)
2006/12	Selected to give a talk (The putative acetyltransferase San is required for mitotic sister chromatid cohesion during Drosophila early embryonic development) at the Portuguese Drosophila meeting.	2006 - Portuguese Drosophila meeting - DrosTuga Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência (Oeiras, Portugal)
2005/07	Selected to attend and give a talk at the 14th International Carotenoid Symposium (ClpC gene expression is induced under stress conditions leading to massive carotenoids accumulation in Dunaliella salina)	14th International Carotenoid Symposium (Edinburgh)

Supervision

	Thesis Title Role	Degree Subject (Type) Institution / Organization
2019/03/01 - Current	Supervisor of a Post-Doc fellow within the scope of the project "Regulation of microtubule organizing centers during development" (PTDC/BIA/32225/2017) Supervisor	Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal
2024/01/01 - 2027/12/31	Mechanisms involved in the assembly and function of non-centrosomal based Microtubule organizing centers in the Drosophila female germ-line. Supervisor of Jéssica Cabrita (Ciência ID: 5C19-AF28-1BD3)	Universidade Nova de Lisboa Centro de Estudos de Doenças Crónicas, Portugal Universidade Nova de Lisboa Faculdade de Ciências Médicas, Portugal
2021/10/15 - 2023/03/28	Supervision of the master student Jéssica Cabrita, which developed the project entitled: Regulation of microtubule-organizing centers during development in Drosophila melanogaster (Master project score: 20 out of 20). Supervisor of Jéssica Irina Cabrita	Master Thesis in Molecular Biology and Genetics Universidade de Lisboa Faculdade de Ciências, Portugal
2021/10/15 - 2023/02/28	Supervision of the master student Ana Silva, which developed the project entitled: Identification and characterisation of new players involved in the assembly of the meiotic spindle in Human oocytes (Master project score: 19 out of 20). Supervisor of Ana Maria Silva (Ciência ID: F61E-DEB6-DDB0)	Mestrado em Biologia Humana e Ambiente (Master) Universidade de Lisboa Faculdade de Ciências, Portugal
2016 - 2017	Supervisor at Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência of the Master's Project entitled "Identification and characterization of new players involved in the centriole maintenance program" Co-supervisor	Universidade de Lisboa Faculdade de Ciências, Portugal

Event organisation

	Event name Type of event (Role)	Institution / Organization
2018/09 - 2019/09	Member of the organization committee of the 2019 Portuguese Drosophila meeting - DrosTuga. As main proponent I secured funding from the Company of Biologists (UK). Total: 2.000£. (2018/10 - 2019/09) Meeting (Member of the Organising Committee)	Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal Universidade do Porto Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Portugal Universidade Nova de Lisboa Centro de Estudos de Doenças Crónicas, Portugal Centro Champalimaud, Portugal

Event participation

	Activity description Type of event	Event name Institution / Organization
2019 - Current	I was invited, along with other 108 female scientists, to participate in a photobook developed by Ciência Viva. The goal of this project was to show the faces of female scientists from different scientific fields of research across Portugal. http://www.cienciaviva.pt/mulheresnaciencia/segunda-edicao/index.asp?id=841 Exhibition	Mulheres na Ciência - 2.ª Edição 2019 Ciência Viva, Portugal
2018/10 - Current	Speaker in “À Conversa com Cientistas” - an initiative, part of the Gulbenkian Institute’s Open Day, that fosters dialogue between scientists and the general public. Topic of the session: Reproduction and fertility: what can cells teach us?	Gulbenkian Institute’s Open Day Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal
2019/11 - 2019/11	I gave a talk to undergraduate students at Escola da Moita to talk about my scientific path and how it is to be a scientist. Seminar	O que é ser um cientista?

Jury of academic degree

	Topic Role	Candidate name (Type of degree) Institution / Organization
2023/01/24	Thesis arguer in the public test for the defense of the doctoral dissertation leading to the attribution of the doctorate degree in Integrative Biology and Biomedicine to the student Margarida Araújo. Thesis entitled: Endoplasmic Reticulum membranes are continuously required to maintain mitotic spindle size and forces. (Thesis) Arguer	Margarida Maria Mimoso Reis Araújo (PhD) Universidade Nova de Lisboa Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica, Portugal
2021/06/07	Main arguer in the public test for the defense of the Master's Dissertation leading to the attribution of the Master's degree in Biochemistry for Health (Mestrado em Bioquímica da Saúde) to the student Cristina Teixeira Manuel. Thesis entitled : The role of ciliogenesis in carbon-monoxide induced astrocyte cytoprotection. (Thesis) Main arguer	Cristiana Teixeira Manuel (Master) Universidade Nova de Lisboa Faculdade de Ciências Médicas, Portugal

Association member

	Society Organization name	Role
2009 - Current	Portuguese Biochemical Society (SPB)	Member
2008 - Current	Member of the Portuguese Society for Developmental Biology (Portugal)	Member

Conference scientific committee

	Conference name	Conference host
2018 - 2019	2019 - Portuguese Drosophila annual meeting - DrosTuga. Batalha, Portugal. (http://drosophilameeting.pt/2019)	IGC, I3S, CEDOC, CCU

Course / Discipline taught

	Academic session	Degree Subject (Type)	Institution / Organization
2019/09 - Current	Invited to give a class on the subject Forward and Reverse Genetics in an introductory course to Drosophila Genetics organized by the Portuguese Consortium for Genetically Tractable Organisms (https://congento.org/training-and-events/). Portugal
2022/10 - 2023/01	I taught the modules "General concepts of molecular biology" and "Cell cycle and DNA repair" in the scope of the curricular unit Cell Regulation Course of the NOVA Biomedical Research Master Program (Mestrado em Investigação Biomédica).	Nova Biomedical Research Master Program (Mestrado)	Universidade Nova de Lisboa Faculdade de Ciências Médicas, Portugal
2019/07/02 - 2019/07/22	I participated as a teaching assistant on the renowned Physiology course organized by the Marine Biological Laboratory of the University of Chicago, USA (3 weeks).		Marine Biological Laboratory, United States
2016/10/02 - 2016/10/03	Lecturer of the Master's on Biochemistry (University Nova de Lisboa, Faculdade de Ciências e Technological). Lecture: Cell Cycle.	Mestrado em Bioquímica (Mestrado)	Universidade Nova de Lisboa Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Portugal

Interview (newspaper / magazine)

	Activity description	Newspaper / Forum
2018/03	Interviewed by the Magazine Conversas Íntimas (Grupo Cofina Media) to talk about “how it is to be a female researcher in Portugal”	Conversas Íntimas (Grupo Cofina Portugal)
2017	Interviewed by the Journal Diário do Sul regarding study study I developed during my Postdoc and which was published in the international journal: science (2016) and was further awarded by the Medals of Honor L’Ore´al Portugal for Women in Science.	Diário do Sul
2017	Interviewed by Diário de Noticias regarding the work I developed and which was awarded by Medals of Honor L’Oréal for Women in Science.	Diário de Noticias

Interview (tv / radio show)

	Program	Topic
2017/02/08 - Current	Interviewed at the Radio show “Manhãs da Renascenca” regarding the work I developed and which was awarded by Medals of Honor L’Oréal for Women in Science.
2016/06 - Current	I was interviewed at the national TV channel RTP in the program “Bom dia Portugal” to talk about the work I developed during my Postdoc and which was published in the international journal: science (2016).

Journal scientific committee

	Journal title (ISSN)	Publisher
2014 - Current	Molecular Biology of the Cell (1939-4586)	American Society for Cell Biology

Distinctions

Award

2020	ASSISTANT RESEARCH CONTRACT (CEEC-IND) - from FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia) iNOVA4Health, Portugal
2016	Medals of Honor L’Oréal Portugal for Women in Science 2016 (Only 4 medals were awarded out of more than 80 applicants) (15.000€ awarded by L’Oréal, UNESCO and FCT)

Other distinction

2021	Prize for 3rd best oral communication ate the Portuguese Drosophila Meeting - DrosTuga 2021
2021	Awarded with funding as a PI with a Exploratory Grant from FCT (EXPL/MED-OUT/0972/2021; 50.000€) Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, Portugal
2019	Awarded with a meeting organization grant (as main proponent) from the Company of Biologists (UK). Total: 2.000£ The Company of Biologists, United Kingdom
2017	Awarded with funding as a PI with a grant from FCT (PTDC/BIA/32225/2017; 239.000€) Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, Portugal
2011	Salary grant (postdoctoral fellowship) from Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (SFRH/BPD/79680/2011) Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, Portugal
2009	Travel Grant (500€) from the Federation of European Biochemical Societies (FEBS) to attend and present work at the “FEBS Practical Course on Protein interaction modules”. Federation of European Biochemical Societies, United Kingdom
2007	Salary grant (Ph.D. fellowship) from Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (SFRH/BD/28767/2006) Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, Portugal