I, Rita Martins, am a PhD Student at the Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS) (University of Minho). I graduated in Biomedical Sciences by the University of Aveiro in 2021, where I developed the project “Consigo Contigo: a mobile app for suicide prevention”, which earned recognition as a semifinalist in the 12th edition of the Angelini University Award. Additionally, I did a volunteer internship at the iBiMED Genomics Facility (iBiGen) under the guidance of Dr. Gabriela Moura (University of Aveiro), where I was involved in patient sample analysis for COVID-19 detection and genotyping protocols using microarrays. In 2023, I completed my Master’s in Molecular Genetics at the University of Minho with the dissertation “The therapeutical potential of TUDCA against stress-related brain pathologies”, under the supervision of Dr. Joana Silva at ICVS. During this project, I delved into the molecular, cellular and behavioural effects of TUDCA in a mouse model of chronic stress, acquiring hands-on experience in several methodologies ranging from animal manipulation and behaviour (assessment of cognition, anxiety and depressive-like behaviours) to cellular (e.g. neuronal reconstruction, spine characterization and density, and fluorescent microscopy imaging) and molecular techniques (e.g. tissue fractionation, mRNA and protein content evaluation). I received a Travel Grant from the International Society of Neurochemistry (ISN) to present my work in a poster format at the "ISN-ESN 2023 Meeting". Additionally, in 2025, I presented a poster of my work in TUDCA as a potential treatment for Alzheimer's in the "3rd Symposium on Alzheimer's Disease: An Update on Pathology and Therapeutics" in Porto. I am also a co-author in a poster presented at the “30th Meeting of the Hellenic Society for Neuroscience (HSfN)” and in an ongoing paper "Screening of novel ASOs against Tau protein - shifting isoforms" (Campos-Marques et al., Molecular Therapy, in preparation). I have also participated in Dr. Silva’s team as a Research Fellow in a collaborative project with the International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory (INL), focusing on Alzheimer's Disease markers detection in blood samples. Currently, I have been granted an FCT fellowship to start my PhD project "Local translation at the synapse: the role of cytotoxic granule-associated RNA-binding protein TIA1". Simultaneously, I am enrolled in a Bioinformatic Master’s program to refine skills relevant to my research and doctoral studies.