Megan Braga embarked on her journey at the University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD), where she earned a Bachelor’s degree in Genetics and Biotechnology (G&B) in 2020. Her thesis was focused on the evaluation of the phytoestrogens exposure effects on embryonic development of zebrafish. Megan received a FCT’s “Verão com Ciência” program grant to complement her work, under Dr. Ana Coimbra's supervision, conducting RNA extraction, quantitative Polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) for gene expression, and morphometric analysis using calcein staining and ImageJ/MorphoJ software. She received an honorable mention for her poster presentation titled “Evaluation of genistein-induced bone and cartilage malformations in zebrafish larvae” at the “XIII G&B Conference/III G&B Iberian Conference’2021”. Megan has also a poster, titled “TP53: a tumour suppressor gene or an oncogene?” presented at the 2019 conference. Megan then pursued an MSc in Biotechnology for Health Sciences (BCS), also at UTAD. For her Master’s dissertation, under Dr. Manuela Freitas’s guidance, she applied the Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization (FISH) technique to study chromosomal mosaicism in buccal mucosa samples. The developed innovative and sustainable methodology based on the FISH technique was later integrated into Jacinto Magalhães Medical Genetics Center (CHUdSA/CGMJM)’s diagnostic methods repertoire. She presented her findings on two oral presentations, at CHUdSA/CGMJM's service and at IJUP-16th Youth Research Meeting of the University of Porto, both in 2023. Her results were also presented at the 27th Annual Meeting of the Portuguese Society of Human Genetics’2023 with the poster titled “The importance of karyotyping in unraveling a chromosome 15 duplication ring”. During her academic journey, Megan attended more than ten scientific events, organized the “II BCS Conference”, completed a B2.2 English course and joined a volunteer project, teaching natural sciences to 3rd cycle students. Further enriching her professional competence, Megan embarked on a voluntary internship as part of the Erasmus+ program, collaborating with Dr. Thomas Liehr at the Jena Institute of Human Genetics in Germany. This experience exposed her to cutting-edge techniques such as chromosomal microdissection, Array Comparative Genomic Hybridization, and Ilumina/Sanger sequencing. She performed FISH using commercial/customized probes in a project titled “Mapping BAC Probes in Centromeric Regions of Human Chromosomes”. Megan started working in 2023 as a Researcher at BLC3 Association, where she made contributions to the agricultural science’s field with two publications titled "Portuguese Castanea sativa Genetic Resources: Characterization, Productive Challenges, and Breeding Efforts", where she was the 1st author and "Positioning Portugal in the Context of World Almond Production and Research". She also participated in an EU-funded Erasmus+ project titled “Sown Future Circular Economy and Sustainable Food System” in Italy. Since 2024 , Megan works as a Services/Laboratory Manager and Laboratory Technician at InnovPlantProtect, under a PRR project. Megan delivers scientific services in molecular biology, including DNA/RNA extraction, microorganism isolation and identification via PCR/Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP). She conducts plant genotyping using SeqStudio, qPCR and plant/soil microbiome analysis with Oxford Nanopore Technologies, having trained at António Xavier Institute of Chemical and Biological Technology (ITQB). She is also undergoing training to acquire the Certificate of Pedagogical Competence (CCP).