Research groups
Marta Madureira
Visiting PhD Student
I hold a BSc in Molecular and Cellular Biology from the New University of Lisbon. After graduating in 2012, I enrolled in the MSc in Molecular Genetics and Diagnostics program at the University of Nottingham. That is when my passion for research into neurodegenerative disorders started, after doing my Master's research project in Alzheimer's Disease with Professor Kevin Morgan. From 2014 until the end of 2017, I worked as a research technician in the Hens Lab at the University of Oxford, looking at expression of synthetic promoters in Drosophila Melanogaster. In 2018, I enrolled into the GABBA PhD Program, from the University of Porto. I am currently doing my PhD research project with Professor Richard Wade-Martins, looking into LRRK2, autophagy and lysosomal activity in the context of Parkinson's Disease (PD).
Current Project
My PhD research project aims at investigating the relationship between LRRK2 - one of the most common genetic factors for Parkinson's Disease - and the lysosomal proton pump vATPase, specifically the a1 subunit which has been previously found to be interacting with LRRK2 in neurons by our lab. This work will enable us to understand the role of LRRK2 and the phenotypes caused by its mutations, and to better develop new drug targets for LRRK2-related PD.