Avó Ana Patrícia

High interest in molecular biology and genetics. Previously I worked in two different projects: - in Hepatitis C Virus: it was developed a molecular method for Hepatitis C Virus classification more efficient and cheaper than the commercial method commonly used - in Vitis vinifera: it was studied the inter- and intra-varietal genetic variation of Portuguese varieties; and it was analyzed the effects of heat during reproductive growth, on the dynamics of somatic nuclei and meiotic chromosomes of Vitis vinifera Nowadays I am working with marine/estuarine nematodes with the aim to develop and validate a more rapid and effective tool to be used in biodiversity monitoring of marine nematodes, and evaluation of marine environment quality. For an improved calibration of the tool, I am developing the barcoding for marine nematodes creating a nucleotide sequences library. In paralle, another molecular tool is being developed for quantification of marine nematode populations. Benthic nematodes are considered ideal organisms to be used as biological indicator of disturbances underpinning monitoring programmes on the ecological quality of marine ecosystems. The development of these molecular tools is critical for the improvement in assessment and monitoring of ecosystems. The concerns with the status of marine ecosystems have increased, and the Marine Directive has as main goal the achievement of Good Environmental Status (GES) of EU marine waters by 2020. Molecular tools are seen as promising and emerging approaches to improve ecosystem monitoring, and have led ecology into a new era. Working in different areas making me a more versatile scientist.