Submitted two new photos of pine wilt disease to the EPPO Global Database
Paper published in the European Journal of Plant Pathology shared on the EUFORGEN website
Invited as Guest Associate Editor to co-host the Research Topic on "Eco-Omics Approaches in Nematode–Plant–Soil Microbiome Interactions" in Frontiers in Plant Science
New paper published in the European Journal of Plant Pathology
First review paper resulting from a collaboration with De La Salle University's Plant and Soil Health Research Unit is out in Nitrogen
Paper is featured on the European Institute of Planted Forest website
Participated in the 1st edition of the Oeiras Valley Science Festival [1] [2]
Created an article about the nematophagous fungi Esteya spp. on Wikipedia
Admitted and enrolled in the EIT Food RIS Inspire - HealthySoil4Life Summer School
Observation of Bee Orchid (Ophrys apifera) recorded on iNaturalist
Technical article about entomopathogenic nematodes in sustainable agriculture published in the Portuguese magazine Vida Rural, and available in open access
Entry for the EUPHRESCO Video Contest 2025 is up on YouTube, and the news covered on the INIAV website
Research from PineProtect was presented at the GREEN-IT Plant Interaction Meeting, hosted by ITQB NOVA on March 12, 2025
Co-organizing the Virtual Nematology Conference 2025, a joint effort between the Young Nematologists Network, Active Plant Nematologists, and the Society of Nematologists' Graduate Student Committee
Another paper is covered on MedForest.net and the EFI Network News
Participated in the closing workshop of PratyOmics – Plant Metabolomics for the control of the root lesion nematode Pratylenchus penetrans
First paper of 2025 was published in Forests
PhD work was touched upon in the S03E47 of the “I See Dead Plants” podcast
Latest paper featured on the European Institute of Planted Forest website and on the IEFC January 2025 Newsletter
Attended PurPest's Digitial Project Meeting
Latest paper featured on MedForest.net and on the EFI Network News
Lectured two practical classes in Nematology at the School of Agriculture of the University of Lisbon
Recorded, edited, and published a YouTube video explaining how the EU-funded project PurPest aims to speed up screening and detection of the quarantine nematode Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, to prevent its dissemination to new forest areas
New paper titled "Polyphasic approach to the selection of Esteya isolates for the control of the pinewood nematode, Bursaphelenchus xylophilus" was published in Fungal Biology
Made brief appearances on Portuguese TV channel RTP3's 37th and 38th episodes of "Hora de Agir"
Review paper highlighted in a press release from Pheronym, and relayed on news outlets
Invited by the Editorial Board of The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) to serve as a Guest Editor of two manuscripts
Work carried out by Active Plant Nematologists was presented at the 63rd Annual Meeting of the Society of Nematologists
Papers reached 100 citations on Google Scholar and ResearchGate
Literature review has reached 50 citations
PineProtect is once again listed on the 2024 report from the Pinus Competence Center on ongoing R&D projects with maritime pine in Portugal
Review paper in Sustainability was discussed at NemAfrica's Nematology Journal Club
Selected to participate in the "Host-microbe interactions: mechanisms and ecosystem relevance" PhD course, held at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Participated in the EURL Training Workshop on Nacobbus aberrans diagnostics
Presented the annual progress of my PhD thesis during the Public PhD Sessions in Biology at the University of Évora
Mentioned in the Healthy Plant newsletter, compiled by the Ministry of Regional Affairs and Agriculture of the Republic of Estonia; see the PDF here
Gave a short talk at the 35th Symposium of the European Society of Nematologists on "Nematology in the digital age: mastering communication", within the framework of the EU-funded project PurPest
Submitted several nematode silhouettes to the PhyloPic database: Bursaphelenchus xylophilus egg, B. xylophilus 1 and 2, and Pratylenchus penetrans
Reelected Student Representative on the Course Committee of the doctoral program in Biology at the University of Évora for the biennium 2024/2025
Involved in the dissemination activities of two events on the current strategies and future directions for the control of the pinewood nematode and management of pine wilt disease
Invited to collaborate with De La Salle University's Plant and Soil Health Research Unit
Two figures used in educational material produced by Indira Gandhi National Open University
Taught three practical classes in Nematology at the School of Agriculture, University of Lisbon
Presented online at the Advances in Nematology 2023 conference; watch the recording
My research reached 50 citations on November 17, 2023
Presented the talk "Biocontrol of nematodes using fungi: the case of the pinewood nematode" on the PhytoHealth International Webinar Series, De La Salle University, Manila, Philippines
Presented the progress of my PhD project at the Public PhD Sessions in Biology (Sessões Públicas de Doutoramento em Biologia), University of Évora, Portugal
My review article on biocontrol of plant-parasitic nematodes was featured on educational materials shared on two LinkedIn posts [1] [2] and on X
Gave a talk and presented a poster at the 53rd ONTA Meeting in Cairo, Egypt
Received my first "Excellent reviewer" rating on Web of Science
My latest literature review on the importance of nematode communities for soil health under climate change is published in Sustainability
Gave a talk at the 2nd MED Meeting, in Évora, Portugal
PineProtect is listed on the latest report from the Pinus Competence Center on ongoing R&D projects with maritime pine in Portugal
The talk I gave at Advances in Nematology 2022 about the nematophagous fungi Esteya spp. was mentioned in the June 2023 ONTA Newsletter (p. 18)
Story featured on the 500 Queer Scientists' visibility campaign website
Co-author of a magazine article published in Vida Rural (restricted access), and shared on INIAV's website (open access)
Acknowledged for my peer-review activity in 2022 for MDPI journals Cells, Forests and Microorganisms
Part of my PhD project working with Esteya spp. to control the pinewood nematode, presented at the IUFRO Division 7 Meeting in 2022, was briefly covered in a post about the session dedicated to Pine Wilt Disease, on the European Institute Of Planted Forest website
Extremely honored to be featured in the January 2023 Newsletter from the Society of Nematologists
Year-end rundown post about some of my key moments and accomplishments throughout 2022
Paper selected as "Editor's Choice" and featured on the October 2022 issue cover of Pathogens
Elected Student Representative on the Course Committee of the doctoral program in Biology at the University of Évora for the biennium 2022/2023
Presented at the 7th International Congress of Nematology; watch the recording
Spent 3 months in Prague, Czech Republic, between April and June, both at the Department of Botany of Charles University and at the Institute of Microbiology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, within the scope of my PhD project
My magazine article was featured on the Vida Rural (restricted access), and shared on INIAV's website (open access)
Work highlighted on the GREEN-IT website, for the International Day of Forests
Invited speaker at the 1st Pan-African Nematology Network Workshop (see program), to talk about “Social Media Platforms: new ways to communicate Nematology”
Participated in the 2nd Annual Workshop for Plant-Parasitic Nematodes, promoted by the European Union Reference Laboratory for Plant-Parasitic Nematodes
Awarded Best Poster presentation (see page 4) at Advances in Nematology 2021, and mentioned on the Mediterranean Institute for Agriculture, Environment and Development website (in Portuguese)
Observation of European Stag Beetle (Lucanus cervus) recorded on iNaturalist
Lab work was featured in the press (in Portuguese), in the Crédito Agrícola magazine
Invited speaker at the "Nematology Seminar Day 2021 – Career Development and Soft Skills: What's after graduation in Nematology?", organized by the International Master in MSc in Agro- and Environmental Nematology, at Ghent University, Belgium
Proud recipient of a prestigious and highly-coveted PhD Scholarship from the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, FCT), ranking 14th out of 79 candidates in the same panel