Ana Magalhães graduated in Biochemistry (2005) and obtained a PhD in Biomedicine (2011) from the University of Porto. She received advanced training in cancer glycobiology at IPATIMUP under the mentorship of Prof. Celso Reis, and in glycan-mediated bacterial adhesion at Umeå University (Sweden) in the laboratory of Prof. Thomas Borén. She is currently Associate Professor of Biochemistry at School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences of University of Porto (ICBAS) and Senior Researcher at Institute for Research and Innovation in Health (i3S). Her research has significantly contributed to elucidating the role of glycans in gastric pathology, including their function as receptors for the oncogenic bacterium Helicobacter pylori and their involvement in cancer cell signalling, extracellular-communication and metastasis. Ana has co-authored over 50 scientific publications in journals, such as Cancer Cell, PNAS, Nature Cell Biology and Journal of Biological Chemistry. Her work has received more than 3500 citations (H-index 36). She has successfully supervised 6 PhD and 8 MSc students as main or co-supervisor (ORCID: 0000-0003-4863-6668). Over the past five years, Ana has been leading a research team dedicated to investigating glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) in gastric cancer, with a strong focus on translating fundamental discoveries into clinical applications. Her team has shown that dysregulation of GAG biosynthetic pathways drives aggressive tumour behaviour and identified the proteoglycan SDC4 as a biomarker of poor prognosis associated with tumour dissemination. Ana has solid experience in scientific projects coordination and research management and has participated in several European consortia, including GASTRIC GLYCO EXPLORER MSCA-DN and INNOGLY COST action. She is also committed to science outreach and enjoys engaging regularly with younger audiences through school visits to talk about science and organize hands-on science activities in the laboratory (Ciencia Viva and Universidade Junior).
Selected Publications
Syndecan-4 is a maestro of gastric cancer cell invasion and communication that underscores poor survival. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America120(20):, 2023. [Journal: Article] [CI: 27] [IF: 9.4]
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2214853120 SCOPUS: 85158135443
Marques C., Poças J., Gomes C., Faria-Ramos I., Reis C.A., Vivès R.R., Magalhães A.
Glycosyltransferases EXTL2 and EXTL3 cellular balance dictates heparan sulfate biosynthesis and shapes gastric cancer cell motility and invasion. Journal of Biological Chemistry298(11):, 2022. [Journal: Article] [CI: 15] [IF: 4,8]
DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2022.102546 SCOPUS: 85142940251
Magalhães A., Duarte H.O., Reis C.A.
The role of O-glycosylation in human disease. Molecular Aspects of Medicine79:, 2021. [Journal: Article] [CI: 124] [IF: 16,3]
DOI: 10.1016/j.mam.2021.100964 SCOPUS: 85103339673
Magalhães A., Duarte H.O., Reis C.A.
Glycans and Cancer. Encyclopedia of Cell Biology: Volume 1-6, Second Edition4:373-384, 2022. [Book: Book Chapter]
DOI: 10.1016/B978-0-12-821618-7.00019-5 SCOPUS: 85158933728
Marques C., Reis C.A., Vivès R.R., Magalhães A.
Heparan Sulfate Biosynthesis and Sulfation Profiles as Modulators of Cancer Signalling and Progression. Frontiers in Oncology11:, 2021. [Journal: Review] [CI: 62] [IF: 5,7]
DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2021.778752 SCOPUS: 85120413881
Nogueira-Rodrigues J., Leite S.C., Pinto-Costa R., Sousa S.C., Luz L.L., Sintra M.A., Oliveira R., Monteiro A.C., Pinheiro G.G., Vitorino M., Silva J.A., Simão S., Fernandes V.E., Provazník J., Benes V., Cruz C.D., Safronov B.V., Magalhães A., Reis C.A., Vieira J., Vieira C.P., Tiscórnia G., Araújo I.M., Sousa M.M.
Rewired glycosylation activity promotes scarless regeneration and functional recovery in spiny mice after complete spinal cord transection. Developmental Cell57(4):440-450.e7, 2022. [Journal: Article] [CI: 56] [IF: 11,8]
DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2021.12.008 SCOPUS: 85123830565
Fonseca K.L., Maceiras A.R., Matos R., Simoes-Costa L., Sousa J., Cá B., Barros L., Fernandes A.I., Mereiter S., Reis R., Gomes J., Tapia G., Rodríguez-Martínez P., Martín-Céspedes M., Vashakidze S., Gogishvili S., Nikolaishvili K., Appelberg R., Gärtner F., Rodrigues P.N.S., Vilaplana C., Reis C.A., Magalhães A., Saraiva M.
Deficiency in the glycosyltransferase Gcnt1 increases susceptibility to tuberculosis through a mechanism involving neutrophils. Mucosal Immunology13(5):836-848, 2020. [Journal: Article] [CI: 23] [IF: 7,3]
DOI: 10.1038/s41385-020-0277-7 SCOPUS: 85082197621
Magalhães A., Duarte H.O., Reis C.A.
Aberrant Glycosylation in Cancer: A Novel Molecular Mechanism Controlling Metastasis. Cancer Cell31(6):733-735, 2017. [Journal: Short Survey] [CI: 133] [IF: 22,8]
DOI: 10.1016/j.ccell.2017.05.012 SCOPUS: 85020642808
Magalhães A., Marcos-Pinto R., Nairn A.V., dela Rosa M., Ferreira R.M., Junqueira-Neto S., Freitas D., Gomes J., Oliveira P., Santos M.R., Marcos N.T., Xiaogang W., Figueiredo C., Oliveira C., Dinis-Ribeiro M., Carneiro F., Moremen K.W., David L., Reis C.A.
Helicobacter pylori chronic infection and mucosal inflammation switches the human gastric glycosylation pathways. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta - Molecular Basis of Disease1852(9):1928-1939, 2015. [Journal: Article] [CI: 71] [IF: 5,2]
DOI: 10.1016/j.bbadis.2015.07.001 SCOPUS: 84940455366
Magalhães A., Gomes J., Ismail M.N., Haslam S.M., Mendes N., Osório H., David L., Le Pendu J., Haas R., Dell A., Borén T., Reis C.A.
Fut2-null mice display an altered glycosylation profile and impaired BabA-mediated Helicobacter pylori adhesion to gastric mucosa. Glycobiology19(12):1525-1536, 2009. [Journal: Article] [CI: 98] [IF: 3,9]
DOI: 10.1093/glycob/cwp131 SCOPUS: 71049182586
