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Hire Dr. Maria S.

Portugal

USD 50 /hr

Life Sciences Researcher | Science communication | Grant writing | 10+ years of project design and implementationd impln

Profile Summary

Dynamic and motivated biophysicist (Ph.D.) with over 12 years of experience in molecular biophysics, passionate about understanding cell aging and age-associated biomechanical deterioration. Prepared 12 R&D proposals for Portuguese and European funds e.g., Horizon 2020 Pilar 1 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action and Hop-On EIC Pathfinder. Managed and implemented 3 R&D projects and participated in a total of 10 collaborative projects across Europe. In particular, I was awarded and led a prestigious European Marie Curie grant to implement my own research. Proactive, with a strong ability to work autonomously within a team, in a multi-disciplinary and fast-paced environment, applying my excellent organisational, communication, self-management and interpersonal skills.

Subject Matter Expertise

• ☆ Analytical Chemistry
• ☆ Spectroscopy
• ☆ Fluorescence Spectroscopy
• ☆ Cell Biology
• ☆ Cell-Based Assays
• ☆ Membrane Biology
• ☆ Biophysics
• ☆ Microscopy
• ☆ Light Microscopy
• ☆ Fluorescence Microscopy
• ☆ Cell Culture
• ☆ Primary Cells
• ☆ Cell Aging

Services

• Writing
• Research
• Consulting
• Data & AI

Writing Technical Writing

Research Scientific and Technical Research

Consulting Scientific and Technical Consulting

Data & AI Image Analysis, Data Visualization, Data Processing

Work Experience

PostDoc

Instituto de Medicina Molecular João Lobo Antunes

June 2020 - Present

PostDoc

J. Heyrovsky Institute of Physical Chemistry

April 2017 - May 2020

PostDoctoral fellow

Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia

April 2016 - March 2017

Education

PhD (Centro de Química-Física Molecular)

Universidade de Lisboa Instituto Superior Técnico

January 2012 - April 2016

Masters (Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry)

University of Lisbon

September 2009 - October 2011

Bachelor (Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry)

University of Lisbon

September 2006 - July 2009

Certifications

• Certification details not provided.

Publications

JOURNAL ARTICLE

Ana Reis, Maria João Sarmento, Mariana Ferreira, Paula Gameiro, Victor de Freitas (2025). Cholesterol Sulfate in Biological Membranes: A Biophysical Study in Cholesterol-Poor and Cholesterol-Rich Biomimetic Models . Membranes.

A. Reis, Maria J. Sarmento, Mariana Ferreira, Paula Gameiro, Victor de Freitas (2025). Cholesterol Sulfate in Biological Membranes: A Biophysical Study in Cholesterol-Poor and Cholesterol-Rich Biomimetic Models . Membranes.

Neuza Domingues, Steve Catarino, Beatriz Cristóvão, Lisa Rodrigues, Filomena A Carvalho, Maria João Sarmento, Mónica Zuzarte, Jani Almeida, Teresa Ribeiro-Rodrigues, Ânia Correia-Rodrigues, et al. (2024). Connexin43 promotes exocytosis of damaged lysosomes through actin remodelling . The EMBO Journal.

Maria J. Sarmento, Alicia Llorente, Toni Petan, Denis Khnykin, Iuliana Popa, Matea Nikolac Perkovic, Marcela Konjevod, Morana Jaganjac(2023). The expanding organelle lipidomes: current knowledge and challenges . Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences. 80. (8). Springer Science and Business Media {LLC}

The expanding organelle lipidomes: current knowledge and challenges @article { author = {Maria J. Sarmento and Alicia Llorente and Toni Petan and Denis Khnykin and Iuliana Popa and Matea Nikolac Perkovic and Marcela Konjevod and Morana Jaganjac}, title = {The expanding organelle lipidomes: current knowledge and challenges}, journal = {Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences}, volume = {80}, number = {8}, year = {2023}, month = {aug}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00018-023-04889-3}, doi = {10.1007/s00018-023-04889-3} } . Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences.

Which moiety drives gangliosides to form nanodomains? @article { author = {David Davidovic and Mercedes Kukulka and Maria J. Sarmento and Ilya Mikhalyov and Natalia Gretskaya and Barbora Chmelová and Joana C. Ricardo and et al.}, title = {Which moiety drives gangliosides to form nanodomains?}, journal = {The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters}, year = {2023}, month = {jun}, url = {https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpclett.3c00761}, doi = {10.1021/acs.jpclett.3c00761} } . The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters.

David Davidović, Mercedes Kukulka, Maria J. Sarmento, Ilya Mikhalyov, Natalia Gretskaya, Barbora Chmelová, Joana C. Ricardo, Martin Hof, Lukasz Cwiklik, Radek Šachl (2023). Which Moiety Drives Gangliosides to Form Nanodomains? . The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters.

Luís Borges-Araújo, Marina E. Monteiro, Dalila Mil-Homens, Nuno Bernardes, Maria J. Sarmento, Ana Coutinho, Manuel Prieto, Fábio Fernandes(2022). Impact of Ca2+-Induced PI(4,5)P2 Clusters on PH-YFP Organization and Protein-Protein Interactions . Biomolecules. 12. (7). p. 912. {MDPI} {AG}

Luís Borges-Araújo, Marina E. Monteiro, Dalila Mil-Homens, Nuno Bernardes, Maria J. Sarmento, Ana Coutinho, Manuel Prieto, Fabio Fernandes (2022). Impact of Ca²⁺-Induced PI(4,5)P₂ Clusters on PH-YFP Organization and Protein-Protein Interactions . Biomolecules.

Patrícia M. Silva, Inês V. da Silva, Maria J. Sarmento, Ítala C. Silva, Filomena A. Carvalho, Graça Soveral, Nuno C. Santos(2022). Aquaporin-3 and Aquaporin-5 Facilitate Migration and Cell–Cell Adhesion in Pancreatic Cancer by Modulating Cell Biomechanical Properties . Cells. 11. (8). p. 1308. {MDPI} {AG}

Patrícia M. Silva, Inês Vieira da Silva, Maria J. Sarmento, Silva, Í. C., Filomena A. Carvalho, Graça Soveral, Nuno C. Santos (2022). Aquaporin-3 and Aquaporin-5 Facilitate Migration and Cell–Cell Adhesion in Pancreatic Cancer by Modulating Cell Biomechanical Properties . Cells.

The impact of the glycan headgroup on the nanoscopic segregation of gangliosides @article { author = {Sarmento, Maria J. and Owen, Michael C. and Ricardo, Joana C. and Chmelová, Barbora and Davidovic, David and Mikhalyov, Ilya and Gretskaya, Natalia and et al.}, title = {The impact of the glycan headgroup on the nanoscopic segregation of gangliosides}, journal = {Biophysical Journal}, volume = {120}, number = {24}, pages = {5530--5543}, year = {2021}, month = {dec}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bpj.2021.11.017}, doi = {10.1016/j.bpj.2021.11.017} } . Biophysical Journal.

Maria J. Sarmento, Michael C. Owen, Joana C. Ricardo, Barbora Chmelová, David Davidović, Ilya Mikhalyov, Natalia Gretskaya, Martin Hof, Mariana Amaro, Robert Vácha, et al. (2021). The impact of the glycan headgroup on the nanoscopic segregation of gangliosides . Biophysical Journal.

Maria J. Sarmento, Luís Borges-Araújo, Sandra N. Pinto, Nuno Bernardes, Joana C. Ricardo, Ana Coutinho, Manuel Prieto, Fábio Fernandes (2021). Quantitative FRET Microscopy Reveals a Crucial Role of Cytoskeleton in Promoting PI(4,5)P2 Confinement . International Journal of Molecular Sciences.

Quantitative FRET microscopy reveals a crucial role of cytoskeleton in promoting PI(4,5)P2 confinement @article { author = {Sarmento, Maria J. and Borges-Araújo, Luís and Pinto, Sandra N. and Bernardes, Nuno and Ricardo, Joana C. and Coutinho, Ana and Prieto, Manuel and Fernandes, Fábio and Autor correspondente: Fernandes, Fábio.}, title = {Quantitative FRET microscopy reveals a crucial role of cytoskeleton in promoting PI(4,5)P2 confinement }, journal = {International Journal of Molecular Sciences}, volume = {22}, number = {21}, pages = {11727}, year = {2021}, month = {oct}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijms222111727}, doi = {10.3390/ijms222111727} } . International Journal of Molecular Sciences.

Maria J. Sarmento, Luís Borges-Araújo, Sandra Pinto, Nuno Bernardes, Joana C. Ricardo, Ana Coutinho, Manuel Prieto, Fabio Fernandes (2021). Quantitative FRET Microscopy Reveals a Crucial Role of Cytoskeleton in Promoting PI(4,5)P₂ Confinement . International Journal of Molecular Sciences.

Carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae clinical isolates: In vivo virulence assessment in Galleria mellonella and potential therapeutics by polycationic oligoethyleneimine @article { author = {Mil-Homens, Dalila and Martins, Maria and Barbosa, José and Serafim, Gabriel and Sarmento, Maria J. and Pires, Rita F. and Rodrigues, Vitória and Bonifácio, Vasco D.B. and Pinto, Sandra N.}, title = {Carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae clinical isolates: In vivo virulence assessment in Galleria mellonella and potential therapeutics by polycationic oligoethyleneimine}, journal = {Antibiotics}, volume = {10}, number = {1}, pages = {56}, year = {2021}, month = {jan}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics10010056}, doi = {10.3390/antibiotics10010056} } . Antibiotics.

Dalila Mil-Homens, Maria Martins, José Barbosa, Gabriel Serafim, Maria J. Sarmento, Rita F. Pires, Vitória Rodrigues, Vasco D.B. Bonifácio, Sandra N. Pinto(2021). Carbapenem-Resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae Clinical Isolates: In Vivo Virulence Assessment in Galleria mellonella and Potential Therapeutics by Polycationic Oligoethyleneimine . Antibiotics. 10. (1). p. 56. {MDPI} {AG}

Dalila Mil-Homens, Maria Martins, Jos&#233; Barbosa, Gabriel Serafim, Maria J. Sarmento, Rita F. Pires, Vit&#243;ria Rodrigues, Vasco D. B. Bonif&#225;cio, Sandra Pinto (2021). Carbapenem-Resistant <i>Klebsiella pneumoniae</i> Clinical Isolates: In Vivo Virulence Assessment in <i>Galleria mellonella</i> and Potential Therapeutics by Polycationic Oligoethyleneimine . Antibiotics.

Maria J. Sarmento, Joana C. Ricardo, Mariana Amaro, Radek Šachl (2020). Organization of gangliosides into membrane nanodomains . FEBS Letters.

Organization of gangliosides into membrane nanodomains @article { author = {Sarmento, Maria J. and Ricardo, Joana C. and Amaro, Mariana and Šachl, Radek}, title = {Organization of gangliosides into membrane nanodomains}, journal = {FEBS Letters}, volume = {594}, number = {22}, pages = {3668--3697}, year = {2020}, month = {jul}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/1873-3468.13871}, doi = {10.1002/1873-3468.13871} } . FEBS Letters.

(2020). Interleaflet Coupling of Lipid Nanodomains – Insights From in vitro Systems . Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology.

Interleaflet coupling of lipid nanodomains - Insights from in vitro systems @article { author = {Sarmento, Maria J. and Hof, Martin and Sachl, Radek}, title = {Interleaflet coupling of lipid nanodomains - Insights from in vitro systems}, journal = {Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology}, volume = {8}, year = {2020}, month = {apr}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fcell.2020.00284}, doi = {10.3389/fcell.2020.00284} } . Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology.

Nanoscale distribution of nuclear sites by super-resolved image cross-correlation spectroscopy @article { author = {Oneto, Michele and Scipioni, Lorenzo and Sarmento, Maria J. and Cainero, Isotta and Pelicci, Simone and Furia, Laura and Pelicci, Pier G. and et al.}, title = {Nanoscale distribution of nuclear sites by super-resolved image cross-correlation spectroscopy}, journal = {Biophysical Journal}, volume = {117}, number = {11}, pages = {2054--2065}, year = {2019}, month = {dec}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bpj.2019.10.036}, doi = {10.1016/j.bpj.2019.10.036} } . Biophysical Journal.

(2019). Nanoscale Distribution of Nuclear Sites by Super-Resolved Image Cross-Correlation Spectroscopy . Biophysical Journal.

Marek Cebecauer, Mariana Amaro, Piotr Jurkiewicz, Maria Jo&#227;o Sarmento, Radek Šachl, Lukasz Cwiklik, Martin Hof(2018). Membrane Lipid Nanodomains . Chemical Reviews. 118. (23). p. 11259--11297. American Chemical Society ({ACS})

Exploiting the tunability of stimulated emission depletion microscopy for super-resolution imaging of nuclear structures @article { author = {Sarmento, Maria J. and Oneto, M. and Pelicci, S. and Pesce, L. and Scipioni, L. and Faretta, M. and Furia, L. and et al.}, title = {Exploiting the tunability of stimulated emission depletion microscopy for super-resolution imaging of nuclear structures}, journal = {Nature Communications}, volume = {9}, number = {1}, year = {2018}, month = {dec}, url = {https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-018-05963-2}, doi = {10.1038/s41467-018-05963-2} } . Nature Communications.

Membrane lipid nanodomains @article { author = {Cebecauer, M. and Amaro, M. and Jurkiewicz, P. and Sarmento, Maria J. and Šachl, R. and Cwiklik, L. and Hof, Martin}, title = {Membrane lipid nanodomains}, journal = {Chemical Reviews}, volume = {118}, number = {23}, pages = {11259--11297}, year = {2018}, month = {oct}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemrev.8b00322}, doi = {10.1021/acs.chemrev.8b00322} } . Chemical Reviews.

Maria J. Sarmento, Michele Oneto, Simone Pelicci, Luca Pesce, Lorenzo Scipioni, Mario Faretta, Laura Furia, Gaetano Ivan Dellino, Pier Giuseppe Pelicci, Paolo Bianchini, et al. (2018). Exploiting the tunability of stimulated emission depletion microscopy for super-resolution imaging of nuclear structures . Nature Communications.

Membrane order is a key regulator of divalent cation-induced clustering of PI(3,5)P2 and PI(4,5)P2 @article { author = {Sarmento, Maria J. and Coutinho, Ana and Fedorov, Aleksander and Prieto, Manuel and Fernandes, Fábio and Autor correspondente: Fernandes, Fábio.}, title = {Membrane order is a key regulator of divalent cation-induced clustering of PI(3,5)P2 and PI(4,5)P2}, journal = {Langmuir}, volume = {33}, number = {43}, pages = {12463--12477}, year = {2017}, month = {oct}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.langmuir.7b00666}, doi = {10.1021/acs.langmuir.7b00666} } . Langmuir.

Sarmento MJ, Coutinho A, Fedorov A, Prieto M, Fernandes F(2017). Membrane Order Is a Key Regulator of Divalent Cation-Induced Clustering of PI(3,5)P2 and PI(4,5)P2 . Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids.

Sarmento, M.J., Pinto, S.N., Coutinho, A., Prieto, M., Fernandes, F.(2016). Accurate quantification of inter-domain partition coefficients in GUVs exhibiting lipid phase coexistence . RSC Advances. 6. (71). p. 66641-66649.

Accurate quantification of inter-domain partition coefficients in GUVs exhibiting lipid phase coexistence @article { author = {Sarmento, Maria J. and Pinto, S.N. and Coutinho, A. and Prieto, M. and Fernandes, F.}, title = {Accurate quantification of inter-domain partition coefficients in GUVs exhibiting lipid phase coexistence}, journal = {RSC Advances}, volume = {6}, number = {71}, pages = {66641--66649}, year = {2016}, url = {http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84979587338&partnerID=MN8TOARS}, doi = {10.1039/c6ra13170k} } . RSC Advances.

Role of calcium in membrane interactions by PI(4,5)P2-binding proteins @article { author = {Monteiro, M. E. and Sarmento, Maria J. and Fernandes, Fábio}, title = {Role of calcium in membrane interactions by PI(4,5)P2-binding proteins}, journal = {Biochemical Society Transactions}, volume = {42}, number = {5}, pages = {1441--1446}, year = {2014}, month = {oct}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1042/bst20140149}, doi = {10.1042/bst20140149} } . Biochemical Society Transactions.

Role of calcium in membrane interactions by PI(4,5)P₂-binding proteins. @article{PMID:25233429, title = {Role of calcium in membrane interactions by PI(4,5)P₂-binding proteins.}, author = {Monteiro ME and Sarmento MJ and Fernandes F}, doi = {10.1042/bst20140149}, journal = {Biochemical Society transactions}, month = {10}, year = {2014} } . Biochemical Society transactions.

Sarmento MJ, Coutinho A, Fedorov A, Prieto M, Fernandes F(2014). Ca(2+) induces PI(4,5)P2 clusters on lipid bilayers at physiological PI(4,5)P2 and Ca(2+) concentrations . Biochimica et biophysica acta.

Ca2+ induces PI(4,5)P2 clusters on lipid bilayers at physiological PI(4,5)P2 and Ca2+ concentrations @article { author = {Sarmento, Maria J. and Coutinho, A. and Fedorov, Aleksander and Prieto, Manuel and Fernandes, Fabio}, title = {Ca2+ induces PI(4,5)P2 clusters on lipid bilayers at physiological PI(4,5)P2 and Ca2+ concentrations}, journal = {Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Biomembranes}, volume = {1838}, number = {3}, pages = {822--830}, year = {2014}, month = {mar}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bbamem.2013.11.020}, doi = {10.1016/j.bbamem.2013.11.020} } . Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Biomembranes.

Monteiro, M.E., Sarmento, M.J., Fernandes, F.(2014). Role of calcium in membrane interactions by PI(4,5)P<inf>2</inf>-binding proteins . Biochemical Society Transactions. 42. (5). p. 1441-1446.

Sarmento MJ, Prieto M, Fernandes F(2012). Reorganization of lipid domain distribution in giant unilamellar vesicles upon immobilization with different membrane tethers . Biochimica et biophysica acta.

Reorganization of lipid domain distribution in giant unilamellar vesicles upon immobilization with different membrane tethers @article { author = {Sarmento, Maria J. and Prieto, M. and Fernandes, F.}, title = {Reorganization of lipid domain distribution in giant unilamellar vesicles upon immobilization with different membrane tethers}, journal = {Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Biomembranes}, volume = {1818}, number = {11}, pages = {2605--2615}, year = {2012}, month = {nov}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bbamem.2012.05.028}, doi = {10.1016/j.bbamem.2012.05.028} } . Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Biomembranes.

BOOK CHAPTER

Maria J. Sarmento, F&#225;bio Fernandes(2022). Choosing the Right Fluorescent Probe . Springer Series on Fluorescence. Springer International Publishing

Choosing the Right Fluorescent Probe @inbook { author = {Maria J. Sarmento and Fábio Fernandes}, title = {Choosing the Right Fluorescent Probe}, publisher = {Springer International Publishing}, year = {2022}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/4243_2022_30}, doi = {10.1007/4243_2022_30} } .