I have been involved in Pain Research for 20 years; my training was in classical neuroanatomy performing detailed studies on the neuronal populations of the spinal cord dorsal horn, and from there I pushed my research to include a systems neuroscience focus on pain networks. In 1997-1998 I learnt the novel techniques of multielectrode neurophysiology in the laboratory of A.V. Apkarian (SUNY Upstate Medical University, presently at Northwestern). Upon my return to Portugal, I started one of the first european labs of awake animal neurophysiology, and began training a small group of young researchers. Over the last 8 years, I made important contributions to the understanding of the neural mechanisms behind pain-induced cognitive deficits, focusing on the study of malplasticity in the functional connectivity of prefrontal cortex, amygdala and hippocampus of adult rats and mice, and on how this faulty reorganization affects behavioural performance in tasks dependent on learning, memory, and emotional decision-making. Since receiving my PhD, I have been P.I. in 7 research projects and team coordinator in another 4 collaborative projects; all these projects were obtained in competitive open calls and were funded by public and private national and European entities, totaling an amount over 1.3 million euros (987.000 euros of direct independent administration). In addition, I am a tenured professor of Morphophysiology in the Medical School of the University of Porto. In the Medical School, I sit at the Executive Council of the PhD Program in Neuroscience, I am a member of the scientific advisory board for undergraduate research meetings, and I am deeply involved in the local programs for integration of young medical students in basic research labs.