Rui Rodrigues graduated in Biology from the University of Coimbra (UC) in 2013. He defended his Master Degree's thesis in Cell and Molecular Biology in 2015 also at the UC, and obtained top marks. He carried out his experimental work at the Institute of Molecular Medicine (iMM), Faculty of Medicine (FMUL), University of Lisbon.

He is currently a Ph.D. student at iMM-FMUL, in a project in collaboration with the Institute of Life Sciences of the University of Amsterdam (Netherlands). It aims to study the role of cannabinoids in the regulation of brain processes such as postnatal neurogenesis, and his most recent work has been published as a perspective article  on the role of adult neural stem cells in psychiatric diseases.

He has co-authored 7 scientific articles and is a member of 5 national and international scientific societies/associations. He has participated in 21 scientific events and received 11 awards for participating in them. He is also co-founder of the project “Fala-me Neuro” (Talk to me about Neurons), a neuroscience communication initiative for the Portuguese public.

The National Authority for Medicines and Health Products has approved the first cannabis-based substance for medicinal purposes in Portugal. In the interview, this is one of the topics covered. We also talked about his doctoral project and what he defends about the role of type 2 cannabinoid receptors and physical exercise in neural stem cells

Leonel Gomes

Editorial Team