Inês C. Gonçalves graduated in Microbiology from Escola Superior de Biotecnologia, Universidade Católica Portuguesa in 2003. She got her PhD in Biomedical Engineering from the Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto in 2009. Her thesis was based on biomaterials for blood contact, focusing on the development of molecularly engineered self-assembled monolayers and polymers to bind albumin and reduce thrombus formation in cardiovascular devices. The work was developed at INEB (Biomedical Engineering Institute), in Porto, and at UWEB (University of Washington Engineered Biomaterials), in Seattle.
Between 2010 and 2013 was Post-Doc at INEB and IPATIMUP, focusing her work on biomaterials to prevent gastric cancer, developing glycosylated mucoadhesive microspheres to eliminate gastric infection caused by Helicobacter pylori. In 2013 was hired as researcher by INEB, continuing this line of work, and developing a new area of research using graphene-based biomaterials for different biomedical applications.
She has been involved in 9 research projects, 3 of them as principal investigator, co-organized 9 national/international conferences and is coordinator of the initiative “Porto de Crianças” at INEB that aims to provide primary school children a first contact with science.
Inês Gonçalves is also Invited Assistant Professor at FEUP – Faculty of Engineering of Porto University (since 2010) and at ICBAS – Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar (since 2013), lecturing in BioEngineering Integrated Master (MIB) and Biomedical Engineering Master.
She is the author of 18 papers in top specialty international journals and has one filled international patent. She has given over 35 oral communications and presented over 25 posters in international conferences. She has supervised/co-supervised 6 MSc thesis, and is currently supervising 2 MSc thesis and co-supervising two PhD theses. Her work has been recognized with 6 national and international awards, including “Pulido Valente Science Prize 2006” and “Medal of Honor L’Oreal for women in science 2013.