Sandra de Macedo Ribeiro - Biography#

Sandra de Macedo Ribeiro, Principal Investigator at i3S (Institute for Research and Innovation in Health, Porto University, Portugal), heads the Biomolecular Structure and Function group.

In her internationally recognized Structural Biology research, Sandra investigates the impact of amino acid repeats, especially polyglutamine repeats, on protein-protein interactions. Her focus is on ataxin-3, linked to Spinocerebellar Ataxia Type 3 (SCA3). Sandra's expertise has identified the molecular mechanisms underlying ataxin-3 self-assembly and identified novel molecules and drug repositioning strategies targeting ataxin-3's self-assembly mechanisms. Engaged in science outreach, Sandra promoted the itinerant exhibition "A Rare Look," merging art and science to raise awareness about rare neurodegenerative diseases.

Beyond research, Sandra served as IBMC's deputy Director between 2020 and 2024 and was the deputy coordinator of Neurobiology and Neurologic Disorders at i3S from 2019 to 2023. She was on the Portuguese Scientific Council for Health in Life Sciences from 2020 to 2022. From 2011 to 2016, she led the Molecular and Cellular Biology Unit at IBMC, overseeing a collaborative institutional research program on "Neurodegenerative disorders." Sandra coordinates the Biochemistry and Biophysics Technologies Platform at i3S since 2008.

Sandra has been on the CERIC Scientific Advisory Board (since 2023) and the ESRF Scientific Advisory Committee (since 2022). She reviews grants for the ERC, the European Science Foundation, and various European public and private research funding agencies. Sandra coordinated the Horizon2020 Twinning grant PhasAGE (2021-2024), serves on the scientific advisory board for COST Action CA21160, and was a workgroup leader in COST Action BM1405.