Cristina Barrias is Principal Investigator and Group Leader at Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde/ Instituto de Engenharia Biomédica (i3S/INEB, University of Porto), and invited Associate Professor at Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar (ICBAS, University of Porto) and at Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto (ISEP, Polytechnic of Porto). Currently, she is also a member of the Board of Directors of INEB and a member of the Council of the European Society for Biomaterials (ESB). Her group at i3S (www.i3s.up.pt) focuses on (micro)tissue engineering for regenerative therapies and in vitro disease modeling. She has been working on the design of customized hydrogel 3D matrices and biofabrication tools to direct cellular self-organization into different types of micro-sized building blocks for bottom-up tissue engineering. These microsystems recapitulate complex tissue morphogenesis processes and are being used to investigate the dynamics of cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions in 3D, in pathophysiological contexts, and to decipher key biochemical and biomechanical regulators of cell response. Currently, this knowledge is being translated into the design of advanced 3D in vitro models and of improved therapies for tissue (re)vascularization.
Selected Publications
Vascular units as advanced living materials for bottom-up engineering of perfusable 3D microvascular networks. Bioactive Materials38:499-511, 2024. [Journal: Article] [CI: 2] [IF: 18 (*)]
DOI: 10.1016/j.bioactmat.2024.05.021 SCOPUS: 85193041211
Barros da Silva P., Oliveira R.J.A., Araújo M., Caires H.R., Bidarra S.J., Barrias C.C.
An integrative alginate-based 3D in vitro model to explore epithelial-stromal cell dynamics in the breast tumor microenvironment. Carbohydrate Polymers342:, 2024. [Journal: Article] [CI: 2] [IF: 10.7 (*)]
DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2024.122363 SCOPUS: 85195551038
Magalhães M.V., Débera N., Pereira R.F., Neves M.I., Barrias C.C., Bidarra S.J.
In situ crosslinkable multi-functional and cell-responsive alginate 3D matrix via thiol-maleimide click chemistry. Carbohydrate Polymers337:, 2024. [Journal: Article] [CI: 4] [IF: 10.7 (*)]
DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2024.122144 SCOPUS: 85190291263
Carvalho E.D., Morais M.R.G., Pêgo A.P., Barrias C.C., Araújo M.
The interplay between chemical conjugation and biologic performance in the development of alginate-based 3D matrices to mimic neural microenvironments. Carbohydrate Polymers323:, 2024. [Journal: Article] [CI: 2] [IF: 10.7 (*)]
DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2023.121412 SCOPUS: 85173151997
Neves M.I., Magalhães M.V., Bidarra S.J., Moroni L., Barrias C.C.
Versatile click alginate hydrogels with protease-sensitive domains as cell responsive/instructive 3D microenvironments. Carbohydrate Polymers320:, 2023. [Journal: Article] [CI: 5] [IF: 10.7]
DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2023.121226 SCOPUS: 85165717522
Neves M.I., Bidarra S.J., Magalhães M.V., Torres A.L., Moroni L., Barrias C.C.
Microstructured click hydrogels for cell contact guidance in 3D. Materials Today Bio19:, 2023. [Journal: Article] [CI: 6] [IF: 8,2 (*)]
DOI: 10.1016/j.mtbio.2023.100604 SCOPUS: 85150054257
Feijão T., Neves M.I., Sousa A., Torres A.L., Bidarra S.J., Orge I.D., Carvalho D.T.O., Barrias C.C.
Engineering injectable vascularized tissues from the bottom-up: Dynamics of in-gel extra-spheroid dermal tissue assembly. Biomaterials279:, 2021. [Journal: Article] [CI: 12] [IF: 15,3]
DOI: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2021.121222 SCOPUS: 85118349708
Carvalho D.T.O., Feijão T., Neves M.I., Da Silva R.M.P., Barrias C.C.
Directed self-assembly of spheroids into modular vascular beds for engineering large tissue constructs. Biofabrication13(3):, 2021. [Journal: Article] [CI: 14] [IF: 11,1]
DOI: 10.1088/1758-5090/abc790 SCOPUS: 85105354294
Torres A.L., Bidarra S.J., Vasconcelos D.P., Barbosa J.N., Silva E.A., Nascimento D.S., Barrias C.C.
Microvascular engineering: Dynamic changes in microgel-entrapped vascular cells correlates with higher vasculogenic/angiogenic potential. Biomaterials228:, 2020. [Journal: Article] [CI: 33] [IF: 12,5]
DOI: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2019.119554 SCOPUS: 85074166551
Neves S.C., Moroni L., Barrias C.C., Granja P.L.
Leveling Up Hydrogels: Hybrid Systems in Tissue Engineering. Trends in Biotechnology38(3):292-315, 2020. [Journal: Review] [CI: 82] [IF: 19,5]
DOI: 10.1016/j.tibtech.2019.09.004 SCOPUS: 85075891574
Torres A.L., Bidarra S.J., Pinto M.T., Aguiar P.C., Silva E.A., Barrias C.C.
Guiding morphogenesis in cell-instructive microgels for therapeutic angiogenesis. Biomaterials154:34-47, 2018. [Journal: Article] [CI: 49] [IF: 10,3]
DOI: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2017.10.051 SCOPUS: 85032820887