Ana Paula PÊGO profile

Ana Paula Pêgo got her Ph.D. in Polymer Chemistry and Biomaterials from the University of Twente, the Netherlands, in 2002. In 2003 she moved to INEB – Instituto de Engenharia Biomédica, where she became a Principal Investigator in 2012. In 2015, INEB joined the i3S – Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde (Universidade do Porto), where Ana Paula Pêgo leads the nanoBiomaterials for Targeted Therapies (nBTT) Group. By using nanomedicine strategies the nBTT Group, aims at providing in situ and in a targeted manner the required signals to promote nervous tissue regeneration. The research on new biomaterials for application in neurosciences includes the development of new polymers for the design of alternative vectors to viruses for efficient nucleic acid delivery, the preparation of nerve grafts for spinal cord injury treatment and the design of brain tissue engineered platforms. Societal and ethical issues that concern Regenerative Medicine and NanoMedicine are also topics in which Ana Paula Pêgo is involved. She has been appointed the Scientific Director of the Bioimaging Centre for Biomaterials and Regenerative Therapies of INEB and she is an Invited Associate Professor at the Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar (ICBAS) of the University of Porto. Currently Ana Paula Pêgo is a member of the Board of Directors of i3S, being the Head of Strategy & Creation of Value Unit, is the President of the European Society for Biomaterials (ESB), serves as an Associate Editor of Biomaterials (Elsevier journal) and is part of the Board of Reviewing Editors of Science (AAAS).

Specialist in the fields of biomaterials, nanomedicine, tissue engineering, nervous tissue regeneration and bioimaging, with a strong background in polymer chemistry and the design of novel biomaterials and devices for application in Regenerative Medicine. Sound know-how in the field of cell-material interactions. In the framework of the nBTT Group, Pêgo expects to contribute to the field of regenerative engineering by addressing the challenging issue of neuroregeneration. Three strategies are being followed: i) development of materials for preparation of cellular grafts to be used in nerve defect correction; ii) development of biomaterial-based nanoparticles (vectors) for nucleic acid delivery; and iii) the design of platforms for testing drugs and molecules for tissue regeneration/repair and drug targeting. Emphasis is given to the application of both in vitro and in vivo bioimaging tools to assess the potential of the developed strategies and a number of techniques/methods have been established at the nBTT in order to pursue the above-mentioned strategies: i) synthesis and characterization of polyesters and polycarbonate materials; ii) synthesis and functionalization of biodegradable dendrimers; iii) functionalization of chitosan, and chitosan-based nanoparticles; iv) methods of preparation and characterization of nanoparticles based on polycations and nucleic acids; v) primary cultures of neural cells; vi) in vivo models.

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5169-328X