3R KNOWLEDGE CENTER
i3S - Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto

Address:
Rua Alfredo Allen, 208 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
Phone:
+351 226 074 900
Email:
3rknowledge@i3s.up.pt

3R KNOWLEDGE CENTER

Team

Steering Committee

The Steering Committee will lead the development of the 3RKC into a national and inter-institutional centre during 2024-25. The committee brings together representatives of other 3R-relevant initiatives in Portugal. This includes the two main scientific societies for the 3Rs in Portugal (Sociedade Portuguesa de Ciência em Animais de Laboratório (SPCAL) and Sociedade Portuguesa de Células Estaminais e Terapia Celular (SPCE-TC)) and also NIMSB – Nova Institute for Medical Systems Biology. The committee also includes members of the 3RKC working group at i3S and a representative of the i3S Board of Directors.


Working Group

A working group was established in September 2022 to start building 3RKC. This interdisciplinary group includes senior and junior researchers and scientific platform members.

Anna Olsson

3R KNOWLEDGE CENTER Coordinator

Anna Olsson is an animal welfare scientist and researcher at i3S, where she leads the Laboratory Animal Science group. Her main research interests are animal behaviour and welfare and ethics of the use of animals in research and biotechnology. She has coordinated several EU projects addressing the 3Rs and ethics: ANIMPACT about legislation regulating animal experimentation and REMODEL about organoids and advanced 3D models in research. At i3S she also coordinates the Animal Welfare and Ethics Review Body and the FELASA-accredited training in Laboratory Animal Science.

André Maia

BioSciences Screening Platform Coordinator

André Maia is a cell biology scientist at i3S, where he heads the BioSciences Screening scientific platform. His main interests are high-content microscopy and high-throughput screening with emphasis on the development of screening campaigns with advanced human-cell based models. He participates in several national and international projects, that are example PT-OPENSCREEN, EU-OPENSCREEN, and COST actions.

Marta Alves da Silva

Laboratory Animal Science

Junior Researcher

Marta Alves da Silva is a stem cells and tissue engineering researcher at i3S, at the Laboratory Animal Sciences Group, where she is the scientific manager of the REMODEL project. Her main interests are stem cells biology, organoids, and 3D advanced models (bioreactors, organs-on-chip..). She is part of the team of several national and international projects, a Member of the Ethical Board of a PathFinder project, and of Working Group 1 of CorEuStem COST Action.

Margarida Saraiva

Immune Regulation

Group Leader

Cristina Barrias

Bioengineered 3D Microenvironments

Group Leader

Estrela Neto

Neuro & Skeletal Circuits

Junior Researcher

Daniel Ferreira

Expression Regulation in Cancer

Junior Researcher

Silvia Bidarra

Bioengineered 3D Microenvironments

Junior Researcher

Marta Teixeira Pinto

In vivo CAM assays

Coordinator

Sofia Lamas

Animal Facility

Coordinator

Sofia Lamas graduated in Veterinary Medicine in 2010, at ICBAS UP. Soon after that, she started working at the IBMC/INEB animal facility, now the i3S animal facility, as the facility head and designated veterinarian. She completed a Master in Laboratory Animal Science and Welfare at the UAB, in Barcelona and a PhD focused on reduction methods for assisted reproductive techniques in mice. Sofia supports work in different areas, such as laboratory animals surgical models, imaging techniques or infectious models, always trying to reduce the impact different experiments may have on animal welfare and by optimizing animal models of disease.

Júlio Borlido Santos

Communication Unit

Coordinator

“I am a Science Communicator with a biology background, passionate about bridging the gap between scientific research and the wider community. As the Head of i3S’ Communication Unit, I organize and promote advanced training in soft skills for scientists, as well as communicating complex scientific concepts to a broader audience. Alongside my past work as a life sciences researcher, schoolteacher, and demonstrator at UPorto, I am an active member of various national and international Science with Society projects. I have also served on advisory boards for local School clusters, science communication associations, ethics committees, and communication and cultural councils, among others. My expertise extends beyond traditional scientific communication, as I am keen to explore the intersection of science, culture, and society using art as a tool. I am enthusiastic about discovering new and innovative ways to communicate scientific research to the public and inspire the next generation of science enthusiasts. I am committed to making science and new discoveries a daily theme in social conversation.”