Maria João Mascarenhas Saraiva received a BSc in biology from the University of Porto, Portugal, in 1976, and an MSc in Biochemistry from the University of London, in 1978. Between 1980 and 1984, she did a PhD in biochemistry at the University of Porto, and qualified as Professor of Biochemistry in 1991. She worked for different periods as a Visiting Scientist at the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University, New York. Maria J Saraiva was a Professor of Biochemistry at the Biomedical Institute; of Porto University and Director of the Molecular Neurobiology Group at the IBMC. Maria J Saraiva was awarded the Seiva Prize for Services to Science by the City of Porto, in 1996, and the Gulbenkian Prize in Science, in 2009. Recently, in 2019, she was awarded a national Medal from the Ministery of Science for Merrit in Science. She has published over 250 articles in peer reviewed journals, several reviews on the subject of Familial Amyloidotic Polyneuropathy and the Biology of Transthyretin and regularly delivers keynote lectures at international meetings on these subjects.h-index 65