Nelson Leça
Nelson is a Ph.D.student at Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde (i3S), Porto. He has been focused on understanding the mechanism underlying spindle orientation defects in dividing cells. He will work in the laboratory of Dr. Thomas Maresca at the Biology Department of University of Massachusetts Amherst and benefit from their unique expertise in advanced microscopy and live-cell FRET analysis. The data collected will greatly impact Nelson’s research project and generate critical knowledge to understand the causes of spindle misorientation in cancer and provide a well-characterized set of molecular signatures that might be used to assess tumor aggressiveness and invasion potential. Moreover, his stay at UMass Amherst will help establishing a pipeline for exchange of talent, knowledge, and technology between i3S and UMass Amherst and strengthen intellectual, technical, and human ties between Portugal and the USA.
Universidade do Porto – University of Massachusetts Amherst
Grant duration: 4 months