Cristiana Vilela completed a bachelor's degree in biochemistry at the University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (2017–2021). To fulfill the requirements of her degree, she did her internship project at the Endocrine and Metabolic Research Group in the Unit for Multidisciplinary Research in Biomedicine (UMIB) at ICBAS, School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Porto. In September 2021, she began her master's degree in health biochemistry, specializing in clinical and metabolic biochemistry, at the School of Health (Polytechnic Institute of Porto). Due to her interest in Parkinson's disease, she initiated her master's thesis in 2022 at the Research Center for Translational Health and Medical Biotechnology (TBIO), under the supervision of Doctor Fábio Teixeira, where her research work focused on the relationship between the gut microbiome and Parkinson's disease. These research experiences gave her hands-on expertise in cellular and molecular biology procedures. In November 2023, she defended her dissertation, for which she obtained a 19/20 grade. Her project has opened up new perspectives on the role of PD as a multisystemic disorder, namely the intrinsic relationship between the brain and the gut (manuscript in preparation). After finishing her dissertation, she was invited as a guest assistant professor at the School of Health of the Polytechnic of Porto, in the areas of chemical analysis and molecular biology. In parallel, she was awarded a research grant at TBIO where she also had the opportunity to publish, as first author, the article “From the Gut to the Brain: Is Microbiota a New Paradigm in Parkinson’s Disease Treatment?”. Additionally, she presented three posters at conferences and delivered an oral communication. Currently, she is a PhD student in the Advanced Biotechnology doctoral program at the University of Vigo, Spain. In January 2025, she began her PhD scholarship, funded by FCT (2024.02388.BDANA), and is now focusing on her PhD project titled “Gut-brain axis in 3D: Exploring the complex relationship between Obesity, Microbiota, and Parkinson’s Disease Pathogenesis." Her research interests aims to clarify whether obesity has a direct effect on CNS function or an indirect effect via alterations of the gut microbiome. She expects to unveil more knowledge on this complex systems-interaction and pave the way for the development of novel biomarkers and treatment options, positively impacting PD patients.