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About

Veiga-Fernandes Lab

Veiga-Fernandes Lab

The interplay between diet, immune cells and intestinal microbes ensures vital functions of the organism, such as energy and micronutrient extraction from the diet, protection from pathogenic microbes and maintenance of a healthy epithelial barrier. These complex networks are of vital importance to organismic homeostasis, while inadequate relationships can lead to cancer and chronic inflammatory diseases, which are major Public Health concerns.
Adaptive immune lymphocytes express recombining antigen-specific receptors. These lymphocytes are activated by defined antigens and require a differentiation phase before exerting their effector function. In contrast, innate lymphocytes display rapid effector functions despite their set of limited germ-line encoded receptors. A mounting body of evidence indicates that in addition to their well-established developmentally regulated program, immune cells are also controlled by dietary signals and neuronal inputs. Thus, although there is tangible evidence suggesting that immune cells possess unexpected sensing strategies, how lymphoid cells perceive, integrate and respond to environmental cues remains poorly understood and vastly unexplored.
We centre our efforts on defining lymphocyte sensory mechanisms in health and disease. We use an integrative across-level approach aiming to elucidate the tenets of lymphocyte sensing and communication, within, across and beyond the organism.

INFO

Get in touch

To find out more about our lab, contact Henrique Veiga-Fernandes via email.

Projects

Veiga-Fernandes Lab

Know our Projects

Our long-term goal is to understand sensory and communication pathways that determine immune cell fate and disease progression. To achieve this, we centre our efforts at mucosal barriers that constitute the largest interface of the body with the external environment. Epithelial barriers line body surfaces and grant safeguard against harmful pathogens but are frequent targets of oncologic transformation and chronic inflammatory diseases. In this context, we tackle the following hitherto elusive points:

Team

Veiga-Fernandes Lab

Know our Team

Henrique Veiga-Fernandes

Principal Investigator

Ana Rasteiro

2021 INPDP PHD Student

Bruno Raposo

Research Technician

Cristina Godinho da Silva

Postdoctoral Researcher

David Brea Lopéz

Postdoctoral Researcher

Hélder Ribeiro

Lab Manager

Inês Godinho

Technician

Kristin Fischer

2017 INDP PhD Student

Maria Aliseychik

Postdoctoral Researcher

María Martínez-Lopez

Miguel Rendas

Research Technician

Patricia Bastos

Postdoctoral Researcher

Raquel Silva

2019 INDP PhD Student

Roksana Pirzgalska

Postdoctoral Researcher

Publications

Veiga-Fernandes Lab

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