Maria João Sousa (MJS) is a Biochemist, having obtained her undergraduate degree from the University of Porto in 1987, followed by a PhD in Biomedical Sciences, specializing in Microbiology, from the same institution in 1994. In 2011, she obtained the title of Aggregation in Biology by the University of Minho (UM). Currently, MJS serves as an Associate Professor at the University and holds the position of Director of the Biology Department (DB), which she has fulfilled for eight years. At the DB, MJS has played a pivotal role in the establishment and management of various degree programs, ranging from C1 to C3 levels. She was responsible, at DB, for the proposal of the successful Biochemistry degree (C1) and has been coordinating the curricular update and restructuring of most of the department's degree offerings, encompassing 3 C1, 4 C2, and 2 C3 programs. Throughout her career, she has served as Course Director for several programs, including the C1 degree in Applied Biology (2001-2004), the Masters in Molecular Genetics (2007-2013), and the Doctoral Program in Molecular and Environmental Biology (2018-2020). Moreover, MJS has contributed her expertise to various Course Committees and served on key academic bodies such as the Doctoral College of the University of Minho as the representative of the School of Sciences, the Scientific Council (2013-2018), Pedagogic Council (2009-2013, 2018-2020), and Management Council (2014-2018, 2021-) of the UM School of Sciences. In her research pursuits, MJS operates within the Centre for Molecular and Environmental Biology (CBMA), where she has cultivated a robust network of national and international collaborators and recruited a large number of undergraduate (23), master (45) and doctoral (21) students, of which 76 have successfully completed their work to date. Her research focuses primarily on Yeast Biology, with a specific interest in leveraging yeast biodiversity for novel biorefinery processes and enhanced food fermentations. Employing Integrative Biology approaches, she crosses findings from biochemical and physiological studies with genomic, transcriptomic, and metabolomics data to elucidate the molecular foundations of yeast behavior that can be exploited to develop fitter and better-performing yeasts. In recent years, this research has gained momentum through the TODOMICS project, which involved a comprehensive investigation into an emerging yeast species, Torulaspora delbrueckii. The findings have collectively showcased a significant diversity of phenotypes, underscoring the species' technological potential across various applications. The study has already uncovered the genetic basis for specific behaviors exhibited by certain isolates and provided a comprehensive overview of the repertoire of glucose transporters in this species, building upon team previous efforts that lead to the characterizition the only two glucose transporters previously identified in this yeast. Additionally, MJS's research extends to studying cellular and molecular responses of yeasts to environmental stresses, metabolic adaptation, and cell death pathways, to which she dedicated a significant part of her work. She also utilizes yeast as a model system to investigate heterologously expressed mammalian proteins and identify cellular targets of natural compounds and synthetic molecules, employing integrated approaches and high-throughput methodologies. MJS's scientific contributions are evident in her extensive publication record, which includes 83 peer-reviewed articles, 6 book chapters, 3 patent applications and over 260 presentations in national and international meetings. She has received 6 awards for her work, has organized 20 scientific events, and is an Editorial board member of FEMS Yeast Research and of Microbial Cell. Furthermore, as a Principal Investigator, she has led five projects and participated in an additional 26, underscoring her dedication to advancing scientific knowledge.