We are the UFMG_UFV_BRAZIL team!
Members
Arthur Wakin Enrici
Hiii!!! My name is Arthur Wakim Enrici and I am 20 years old. I have a great passion for the areas of synthetic and molecular biology. So, when I had the opportunity to join the iGEM team, I didn't hesitate to apply. Since then, it has been a great pleasure to be a part of this team, mainly because our solution addresses an overlooked problem that directly affects the lives of thousands of people. In the moments when I'm not flirting with Science, I like to go to the gym, play video games and play instruments. I also love spending time with my friends.
- Wet lab
Ayrton Breno Pimenta Lisboa
My Name is Ayrton Breno Pimenta Lisboa. I am a Doctoral student in Bioinformatics at UFMG. I also have bachelor's and master's degrees in Biotechnology, where I learned about synthetic biology. In 2017 I had my first contact with the iGEM by presenting a project in the Genetic Engineering class. Since then, I wanted to take part in an iGEM team and this was my first opportunity.
- Dry lab analysis
- Overall project design
Beatriz Helena de Mello Orlandi de Deus
Hello! I am Beatriz, an industrial automation technician and a computer science student at UFOP. I have experience with front end in web development. It was exciting when I heard about the opportunity to participate in the iGEM Competition in the wiki development field because I love seeing how the different science fields connect. It’s fantastic to have this experience with a multidisciplinary team.
- Wiki development
Camila de Souza Costa
Hello! My name is Camila and I’m 19 years old. I am currently a pharmacy undergraduate at UFMG. I’ve had my first contact with synthetic biology in 2021 in the Synthetic Biology Club, held at the university. Since then I’ve been amazed by this new world and just wanted to dive in a bit more by participating in the iGEM 2022 team, which allowed me to learn more about this incredible area and enrich my path as a science student. Now I hope to keep on learning and building new innovative solutions for our future.
- Human practices
Gabrielly Carvalho de Mattos
Hey, guys! Here is a Brazilian biologist speaking, I am 23 years old and my name is Gabrielly! As a member of the UFMG Synthetic Biology Club, I got profoundly in touch with the area and immediately aimed to join the iGEM competition. It's incredible to work with an interdisciplinary team for debate and unfold new solutions and interventions from a biotechnology point of view! Now, besides my growth in synthetic biology, this brings me new insights for my development as a scientist and Master's student!
- Wet lab
Laene Abreu Schreiber
Hey! My name is Laene and I’m 19 years old. I am a Chemistry Technician and a Medical Student. Since I heard about iGEM and the fantastic things we can do with synthetic biology in 2018, I decided to participate in the iGEM Competition at some moment of my undergraduation. So I joined the UFMG Synthetic Biology Club in 2020, where I learned much about this field and the iGEM structure. Now I am passionate about biotechnology, SynBio and how these technologies talk to the community. I am grateful to iGEM and the synthetic biology Brazilian community because I have learned amazing things since I started my iGEMer journey.
- Human practices
Livia Batista Galinari
Hey everyone! My name is Livia, I’m 22 years old and I am a Biochemistry student at UFV. I discovered iGEM through an ex igemmer in 2020, when the competition was held online. I participated in some activities and immediately fell in love with synthetic biology and knew that this is the path I want to follow for the rest of my career! Since then I've been engaged with synbio clubs and joined the team UFMG/UFV to help engineer living sistems and try to solve a important but neglected world problem. When I'm not in the lab (never) or attending our billion meeting sessions you can find me listening to pop/mpb music or doing some exercise.
- Wet lab
- Mathematical modeling
Luiz Felipe Tavares Penido
Opa, bão? I’m Luiz Penido, 19 years old, and I am an undergraduate student of Pharmacy at UFMG. I always had interest in synthetic biology since I was a child, probably because of movies like Jurassic Park or any other “science-fiction”. In 2020 I met UFMG Synthetic Biology Club, wich made my knowledge and interest at this subject even higher! I also always liked other areas of the iGEM competition like BioInformatics, Mathematical Modeling, Entrepreneurship, Education, and more. I believe that, to develop projects with the objective of trully inspiring and solving real life problems, you need to value multidisciplinary knowledge and build a diverse, but united team - and this is exactly what this competition has delivered me!
- Human practices
Luiza de Oliveira Possa
Hey, guys! My name is Luiza, I'm 27 years old and I'm a doctoral student in Applied Biochemistry at UFV. I have a bachelor's and master's degree in Nutrition. When I entered for the doctorate, I started to work in the area of synthetic and molecular biology and I fell in love. Working on biological processes and their application made me want to be part of the team. Science and the will to make a difference have always been a part of my life, and the iGEM competition is an incredible opportunity to develop skills and solve problems in the future.
- Wet lab
Maria Eduarda Silva Faria
Hello fellow :) I'm Maria Eduarda and I am 21 years old. I am currently an undergraduate Pharmacy student at UFMG. When I was in high school I signed up for a symposium that I found to be so interesting but had no idea of what was about, the name of it was about something called synthetic biology... I just became fascinated with the possibilities and new technologies that are developed, and how this impacts society and brings new perspectives to many different fields. So I joined the UFMG Synthetic Biology Club in 2021, and learned much more about synbio, in addition to meeting the iGEMers of my university and the brazilian synbio community. After I attended the symposium, participating in the iGEM Competition became one of my objectives for undergraduation, and now I’m officially a member of this iGEM team, the opportunity is unique and an amazing experience.
- Human practices
- Marketing
Maíra Pena de Oliveira Rocha
Hey there! My name is Maíra Rocha, I’m 21 years old and I’m a Chemistry Technician and Pharmacy undergraduate student. I love science every since I was little, and despite being curious about pretty much everything, I must say thay biochemistry is probably my greatest scientifc interest. Currently I’m an intern at a Analytical laboratory and I’m also part of a Neurobiochemistry research group. Biotechnology has recently become a great passion, not only because it’s super fun to learn but also because I truly believe in the capacity of this area to contribute to a healthier and more developed future. It’s simply amazing how Synthetic Biology has been building a new technological background in our world and it’s a real honor to be amongst all these achievements, getting the opportunity to learn by being and iGEM participant and representing my University abroad.
- Human practices
Pedro Rocha Garcia
Hi! I'm Pedro Garcia, a biochemistry undergraduate student and a young science lover. I also enjoy art, playing volleyball, watching movies and making new friends. I engaged in the synthetic biology field because I am fascinated by nature and I believe in the power it has to create new and efficient things, so we need to understand it better to use this power in our benefit.
- Human practices
Paulo Aguiar Muniz
Hello guys! My name is Paulo, I am 28 years old and I am a student of Biomedical Sciences. I believe that iGEM is a very powerful learning and professional insertion platform, helping to shape the future of biotechnology field. I love multi and interdisciplinarity; Building my knowledge bases connecting, covering and deepening into areas such as biology, philosophy, economics and anthropology. I believe that synthetic biology is one of the great deep techs of the century, as it will promote a profound rupture with ways of life, in the production of human thought and, above all, in the construction of what it means to be human. Therefore, being part of the Byosin community allows us to assume the rearguard of the construction of the platform and its implications in the biopsychosocial paradigm.
- Wet lab
- Overall project design
Sávio Ferreira Mendes
Hi! My name is Sávio, I’m 22 years old. When I was a child, I used to play pretend creating "potions" and always wanted to be a scientist. Now, I'm getting my Biochemistry degree at Universidade Federal de Viçosa and fell in love with Microbiology and with the world at the molecular level. I believe that genetically-engeneeried microorganisms are powerful allies to help solving human problems, and we, as teams at iGEM, are here to prove that.
- Wet lab
Vanessa Duarte Pasa
Hello! My name is Vanessa, I am 19 years old and I am currently an undergraduate student of Biomedicine at UFMG. When I joined my course I discovered the Synthetic Biology Club and was immediately interested. I participated in the club and fell in love with the amazing possibilities that exist in the biotechnology field. After one semester, I joined the iGEM team. I can not put in words how much I have learned with this journey! It was not easy but it was definetely worth it. I hope to continue working in this area and to contribute somehow to a better future.
- Wet lab
- Mathematical modeling
Vitor de Morais Santos
Hi guys, I'm Vitor de Morais, 22 years old. I've been passionate about Science since I was little, I always wanted to be a doctor and scientist. My interests range from medicine to astrobiology. The moment I discovered synthetic biology, a world of infinite possibilities opened up to me. As soon as I heard about the synthetic biology and genetic engineering club, I wanted to join the project and immediately join the iGEM team. I am currently undergraduating in Pharmacy at the Federal University of São João Del-Rei and intend to join at the Medical School.
- Human practices
Vitor Frost Marchesan
Hi there! My name is Vitor Frost Marchesan, and I am a Bioprocess and Biotech Engineer. I am currently taking a master's degree in Biotech at UFABC. I also have some Electrical Engineering base and used to be a robot builder team member. Since I was a kid, I like to use knowledge to build new things, and this led me to love to learn about anything and to try to think out of the box and I am a DIY enthusiast. Since my graduation I was astonished by how the lack of appropriate lab equipment can make learning and researching pretty hard, which lead me to pursue solutions with smaller costs. My main focus at the team is the hardware, but I also involved in some wet lab practices.
- Hardware
- Mathematical modeling
Yala Sampaio
Olá. My name is Yala, I’m 27 years old. I have a bachelor's degree in Biomedical Science, and currently, I’m a master’s student in Biochemistry and Immunology department at Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais. I'm deeply passionate about nature and I believe Synthetic Biology will be the next big technological revolution. iGEM has shaped my ways of learning and viewing science. Outside the lab, I love to admire nature, go to the gym, and hang out with friends.
- Wet lab
- Bureaucracy and Finances
Instructors PI
PI Camila Dias Lopes
She is a teacher of the Teaching Career of Basic, Technical and Technological Education of the Technical College UFMG and a supervisor in PROFBIO (Professional Master in Biology Teaching in national network). She holds a PhD (2013) and a Master’s degree (2009) in Biochemistry and Immunology from UFMG. She held a sandwich doctorate at the laboratory SysDiag - Modélisation et Ingénierie des Systèmes Complexes Biologiques pour le Diagnostic (2010), in Montpellier, France, where she worked with Innovative Diagnostic Methods, Production of Monoclonal Antibodies, Prediction of Epitopes and Synthetic Biology. She has experience teaching in higher education, basic and professional. She completed 3 years of post-doctoral studies, expanding knowledge in Diagnosis, antibodies and epitopes, and Bioinformatics. She worked as a technical analyst at the Consulting Unit of Biominas Brasil, with Prospecting and Transfer of technological and product opportunities, between universities and Brazilian and foreign companies. She worked in the Genotyping area of the company Gene/ Genealogical, for 5 years, where she acquired experience in Genetics and Molecular Biology. She is currently involved in mentoring master’s students in classroom applications, TCMs and supporting the construction of didactic activities used nationally in PROFBIO.
PI Liza Figueiredo Felicori Vilela
She is an associate professor at the Department of Biochemistry and Immunology at UFMG. She completed a post-doctorate in bioinformatics, focusing on systems biology and synthetic biology from the public-private SysDiag laboratory in Montpellier, France, where she worked on the European BasysBio project. She also did postdoctoral studies (New Knowledge Program) at the Institute of Biological Sciences of UFMG and also at the University of Texas at Austin, where he worked with the analysis of the antibody repertoire. She works in the fields of toxinology, in the design and synthesis of peptides and synthetic artificial systems aiming at diagnosis and therapy and understanding of the humoral immune response through the sequencing of the repertoire of antibodies of individuals vaccinated and infected by flavivirus and other Brazilian vectors disease neglected. She is the founder of the first biohackerspace in Brazil and appreciates transdisciplinarity in teaching, research and extension.
PI Rafaela Salgado Ferreira
She is a pharmacist (UFMG) and a PhD in Chemistry and Biological Chemistry (University of California San Francisco, USA). She held a postdoctoral degree at the University of São Paulo (2010) and worked as a visiting researcher at the Center de Biochimie Structurale (Montpellier, France) in 2018. Since 2011, she has been affiliated with the Department of Biochemistry and Immunology at UFMG and coordinator of the Laboratory of Molecular Modeling and Pharmaceutical Planning, which employs computational and experimental techniques to develop new ligands for therapeutic targets. She has been working in the field of rational drug development since her PhD, with expertise in the areas of virtual database screening, molecular docking, comparative modeling, and structural biology. Recently, her work was recognized through the L'Oréal-UNESCO-ABC For Women in Science 2017, Chemical Category, L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science International Rising Talent 2018 at Chemistry 2021, Emerging Leader Category".
PI Tiago Mendes
He is currently Associate Professor A of the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at UFV, member of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory Alumni Association, Affiliated Member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences (mandate 2022 to 2026). Since 2019, he has been Coordinator of the Postgraduate Program in Applied Biochemistry at UFV. Coordinates the research group Synthetic Biology and Modeling of Biological Systems that develops projects related to the diagnosis and control of infectious diseases including prototyping and validation of serological and molecular diagnostic tests, identification and optimization of new bioactive compounds against pathogens and vaccine development. Among the projects developed, we highlight the partnership with private companies that include rapid prototyping of immunochromatographic tests of lateral flow for the diagnosis of diseases such as leishamanioses, Chagas disease, viral diseases such as dengue, Zika and COVID-19 and partnership to develop vaccines against multipathogens as a triple vaccine against tick-borne zoonoses (ehrlichiosis, babesiosis and anaplasmosis.
