Biochemical Journal Poster Prize winner

Ana Margarida Ledo

Ana Margarida Ledo (born 1977) obtained her Ph.D. in Biochemistry at University of Coimbra, Portugal in 2007. Currently, she is a researcher at the Center for Neuroscience and Cell Biology (CNC) at Coimbra, working in the Redox Biology in Health and Disease Group (led by Dr Joao Laranjinha). Her main research interests include: 1) understanding how endogenously produced nitric oxide regulates key processes in the central nervous system, namely oxygen usage, energy metabolism and production of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species with relevance in signaling and pathophysiology; 2) understanding the role played by nitric oxide in neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease and Huntington's disease, studying the in vivo concentration dynamics of nitric oxide in discrete brain regions, using transgenic rodent models of these diseases; 3) development of sensors and biosensors for monitoring nitric oxide in the nervous system, both in vivo and using ex vivo preparations (such as acute hippocampal slices).