Research History
Eighteen years ago, following the award of a Marie Curie Reintegration Grant, I shifted my research focus and became interested in understanding the host-parasite interactions that take place during infection of the mammalian host by Plasmodium, the malaria parasite. I became a post-doc in Maria Mota’s research group, initially at Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência and later at Instituto de Medicina Molecular (iMM). In 2008 I was hired under FCT's Ciência 2007 program and became a Staff Scientist of iMM Lisboa’s Malaria Unit. In July 2013 I was hired under the Investigador FCT programme and became a fully independent Group Leader at iMM , heading the Prudêncio lab. I was hired by iMM under FCT's Individual Call to Scientific Employment Stimulus in April 2019. I was appointed Invited Associate Professor of the Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de Lisboa in March 2019 and I was Affiliate Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine, Division of Global Medicine the Stritch School of Medicine of Loyola University of Chicago between 2019 and 2021. I have been able to secure funding as principal investigator in competitive calls launched by national and international funding agencies or institutions, including FCT, Merck, the GSK-Tres Cantos Open Lab Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Malaria Vaccine Initiative and the La Caixa Foundation.
In these 18 years as a malaria researcher, I have contributed to expanding our knowledge of the molecular mechanisms at play during Plasmodium infection, new tools for the investigation of the malaria parasite, and the development of anti-malarial strategies. I have earned several scientific and innovation awards, including the CESPU award, the Mello award for health sciences, and the BES innovation award, and am an inventor of several patents.
I am the author of over 130 scientific articles in international peer-reviewed journals, with over 5400 citations, an h-index of 40, and an i10 index of 90. I have a network of collaborators who are world-leading scientists in their respective areas.
I have been involved in the scientific supervision of several undergraduate and graduate research students, carrying out short and medium length training periods, as part of their degree or PhD. I have been involved in the (co-)supervision of several PhD students and was responsible for the supervision of several MsC students. I currently supervise 3 post-doctoral fellows, 3 PhD Students, 2 MSc student and 2 research assistants. I have lectured at several undergraduate “Health Sciences” and “Medicine” courses at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Lisbon. I regularly lecture in “Molecular Biology” and “Evolution and Development Biology” MSc courses at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon, and in "Biochemistry", "Molecular Genetics and Biomedicine" and "Health Biochemistry" MsC courses at the Faculty of Sciences and Technology of the New University of Lisbon. I am also a lecturer at the GABBA PhD program (IBMC, University of Porto), the BioSys PhD Program (Faculty of Sciences, University of Lisbon) and the Lisbon BioMed PhD program (iMM Lisboa, University of Lisbon).
My research interests focus on the investigation of Plasmodium liver stages and on the exploitation of their potential for anti-malarial intervention. My research program includes unveiling novel aspects of the biology of Plasmodium infection, identifying drugs with antiplasmodial activity, establishing new experimental methodologies to study the malaria parasite, investigating the reciprocal impact of concurrent infections with Plasmodium and other infectious agents, and developing a new strategy for malaria vaccination .
I was Head of the Biosafety Level 3 Facility of the iMM Lisboa bewteen 2010 and 2016. I am a member of the iMM Lisboa Biosafety Commission and the scientific supervisor of this Facility. As Head of the iMM Lisboa BSL3 Facility, I have organized and lectured at several Biosafety courses held at iMM and INSA Ricardo Jorge.
I have had numerous media appearances on printed and online press, radio, and television, in relation to my research work in the malaria field or to the public understanding of science.
I am a founding member of the iMM Lisboa spin-off company RoPlaVac.
As the COVID-19 pandemic emerged, I was involved in setting up iMM’s Task Force for SARS-CoV-2 diagnostics. I have a keen interest on COVID-19 vaccination and have addressed this issue on multiple occasions in webinars and in the media.
Research history (short version)
Miguel Prudêncio graduated in Biochemistry by the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon in 1993 and completed his PhD on Biochemistry by the University of East Anglia in 2000, followed by a post-doctoral period at the University of Leiden. During this period, he worked on metalloprotein characterization and protein-protein interactions. In 2004, he shifted his research focus to the field of malaria and became a post-doc in Maria Mota’s research group at Instituto de Medicina Molecular (iMM). In 2008, he became a Staff Scientist of iMM’s Malaria Unit and, in 2013, he became an independent Group Leader at iMM, heading the Prudêncio lab. He was appointed Invited Associate Professor of the Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de Lisboa in March 2019.
Miguel’s research interests focus on the investigation of Plasmodium liver stages and on the exploitation of their potential for anti-malarial intervention. He is guided by the conviction that the ambitious goal of malaria eradication requires the combination of the knowledge driven by fundamental investigation with the targeted approaches afforded by translational research. His research program includes unveiling novel aspects of the biology of Plasmodium infection, identifying drugs with antiplasmodial activity, establishing new experimental methodologies to study the malaria parasite, and investigating the reciprocal impact of concurrent infections with Plasmodium and other infectious agents. Among his ambitions is a desire to contribute to the development of a much-needed effective vaccine against malaria, which has led him to investigate the immunology of Plasmodium liver infection, and to develop and clinically validate a novel approach to whole-sporozoite vaccination against malaria.
Miguel is the author of over 120 scientific articles in international peer-reviewed journals, having earned several scientific and innovation prizes, and is an inventor of several patents. He regularly lectures at undergraduate and graduate courses in various Faculties.
As the COVID-19 pandemic emerged, Miguel was involved in setting up iMM’s Task Force for SARS-CoV-2 diagnostics. He has a keen interest on COVID-19 vaccination and has addressed this issue on multiple occasions in webinars and in the media.
Research history (<1000 characters version)
Miguel Prudêncio completed his PhD by the University of East Anglia in 2000, followed by a post-doctoral period at the University of Leiden. In 2005, he initiated his research careeer in the field of malaria, at iMM, where he became an independent Group Leader in 2013, heading the Prudêncio lab. He was appointed Invited Associate Professor of the Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de Lisboa in March 2019. Miguel’s research focuses on Plasmodium liver stages and their potential for anti-malarial intervention. His interests include unveiling novel aspects of the biology of Plasmodium infection, identifying drugs with antiplasmodial activity, establishing new experimental methodologies to study the malaria parasite, investigating the reciprocal impact of concurrent infections with Plasmodium and other infectious agents, and developing a new strategy for malaria vaccination. Miguel is the author of over 120 scientific articles, has earned several scientific and innovation prizes, and is an inventor of several patents. He is a founding member the iMM spin-off company RoPlaVac. He was involved in setting up iMM’s Task Force for SARS-CoV-2 diagnostics and has a keen interest on COVID-19 vaccination.
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Timeline
