Margarida Saraiva shares her journey in an initiative on female leadership in science
As part of an initiative by the Journal of Experimental Medicine (JEM), which this year is celebrating and amplifying the voices of women in science, i3S researcher Margarida Saraiva was one of the guests invited to share her journey and vision on the role of women in excellent scientific research. This special series from the JEM gives a voice to female researchers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) from all over the world who lead laboratories, reflecting on the challenges and achievements they face as women scientists.
“I was happy to have been approached for this series because, at times, in the stress of work and the high level of competition we are involved in, we almost forget who we are and who brought us here,” the i3S researcher admits. She continues: “Because it was an opportunity to reflect on these questions, I really enjoyed being involved in this JEM initiative. Furthermore, I immensely appreciate all initiatives that promote women in science, or in any other area of knowledge.”
In Margarida Saraiva’s case, her scientific journey was marked by achievements and adaptations: “Changing countries and then institutes in Portugal, as well as having two small children, was challenging, but it helped me define priorities and shape my research.”
In this section of the JEM, the i3S researcher underlines that she was never in much doubt about what she wanted: “I always wanted to dedicate my career to research and was determined to become a group leader from a very early stage. I had the privilege of having inspiring supervisors, who were not only passionate about science but were also incredible at supporting my interests and ambitions.” She now tries to pass the values she received on to the younger researchers in her laboratory.
As for advice for younger group leaders, Margarida Saraiva’s message is clear and simple: “Focus on the big picture, establish collaborations based on trust, seek out your mentors when you need advice, learn from both successes and failures, and enjoy the science.”
About Margarida Saraiva
With a degree in Biochemistry from the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto (FCUP), Margarida Saraiva began her scientific career as an intern at IBMC, under the supervision of researcher Maria Joao Saraiva, who was one of her great influences. She then went to the University of Cambridge (United Kingdom), where she completed her doctorate in Virology in the laboratory of Antonio Alcami, who is still one of her mentors in scientific research today. For four years, she focused her research on virology, more specifically on poxviruses, the family of the virus that causes smallpox. It was only when she moved to the laboratory of scientist Anne O’Garra, at the Medical Research Council-National Institute for Medical Research (MRC), in London, for her post-doctorate, that she began to dedicate herself to immunology. Here, she investigated the molecular mechanisms that regulate the expression of Interleukin-10 by immune cells.
In 2007, Margarida Saraiva returned to Portugal and joined the Institute for Research in Life and Health Sciences (ICVS) at the University of Minho, where she stayed for eight years, first as a Ciência researcher and later as an FCT Associate Researcher. In 2015, she returned to Porto to lead a research group at the Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology (IBMC), now integrated into i3S. This group, named “Immune Regulation”, aims to investigate the mechanisms underlying the regulation of interactions between host and pathogen.
Between 2018 and 2021, Margarida Saraiva was President of the Portuguese Society of Immunology, and in 2021, her research was referenced in the scientific journal Nature Communications. Also in 2021, she obtained funding from the CaixaResearch Health Research Competition for a project named “TB-TARGET – A multidisciplinary approach to understanding the interactions between host and pathogens in order to develop new strategies to fight tuberculosis”.
With several projects developed in the field of tuberculosis, particularly in Guinea-Bissau, Margarida Saraiva more recently led the i3S team responsible for the discovery of the mechanism that limits the use of the cytokine IL-10 in cancer treatment and other anti-inflammatory treatments. Researcher Paulo Vieira co-leads the initiative and is another of Margarida Saraiva’s mentors, also involved in this work is ICVS, the Pasteur Institute (France), and Nanjing University (China).
