Student receives FEBS Fellowship for internship in Berlin
Eduarda Leite-Gomes, a student from the Molecular and Cellular Biology (MCBiology) doctoral programme at the University of Porto, whose research is being developed at i3S, was recently awarded a Fellowship from the Federation of European Biochemical Societies (FEBS), worth nearly seven thousand euros, which will allow her to complete a three-month internship in Germany.
The University of Porto doctoral student’s internship will take place in the last quarter of 2025 at the Institute of Microbiology, Infectious Diseases and Immunology at Charité University in Berlin under the supervision of researchers Andreas Diefenbach and Irene Mattiola, who are leading figures in the field of immunology and specialists in Innate Lymphoid Cells (ILCs).
With the aim of studying the role of glycans in modulating the immune response during the development of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), Eduarda Leite-Gomes will work with innovative technologies that allow her to explore a specific type of immune cell that plays an important role in intestinal homeostasis. This study is part of the European GlycanTrigger project, coordinated by Salomé Pinho, with researcher Andreas Diefenbach, a world expert in mucosal immunity, as one of the project's partners and the student's co-supervisor.
Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), she explains, affects more than seven million individuals worldwide, and its incidence has increased significantly in recent decades. At this time, she stresses, “it is a global concern, making it essential to understand the biological mechanisms underlying its development, which is why its study is fundamental for establishing new therapeutic strategies.”
For Eduarda Leite-Gomes, this opportunity will allow her to explore the impact of glycans (the focus of the laboratory where she is working, led by researcher Salomé Pinho) in modulating the rare immune population (ILCs). “This is a unique opportunity and professional development experience in a laboratory with innovative technology, which will ensure the success and execution of my doctoral project. Furthermore, this experience will allow us to strengthen the collaboration between the two research institutes and facilitate the transfer of knowledge to i3S,” she adds.