EUTOPIA Health Day: Skin research at NOVA University Lisbon

Students and researchers gathered at the Rectorate of NOVA University Lisbon on 16 December to discuss current research on skin – as part of EUTOPIA Health Day, an initiative of the European project EUTOPIA_HEALTH.    

The opening session featured a speech by the Vice-Rector for Research and Advanced Training, Cecília Roque, who highlighted the diversity of knowledge areas involved in skin-related research. This introduction was framed by a presentation of past and future initiatives of the EUTOPIA_HEALTH project.    

Marco Neves, professor at NOVA FCSH and researcher in the field of languages, literature and cultures, whose series “Esta língua que nos une” (This language that unites us) has gained popularity on Instagram, then explored the origins and evolution of the word ‘skin’, highlighting its multiple meanings depending on its origin: for example, ‘to divide’ and ‘to cover’.    

The scientific programme continued with a series of multidisciplinary presentations. Duarte Barral, professor at NOVA Medical School, addressed the architecture of the skin, pigmentation scales and associated diseases, and presented the NOVASkin® Model, a skin 3D model used to study diseases and therapies; Sofia Satos Costa (IHMT NOVA) discussed bacteria responsible for skin infections; Maria Miragaia (ITQB NOVA) reflected on the immune interactions between commensal skin bacteria and the human host; Mariana Araújo (ITQB NOVA) focused on atopic dermatitis and the pathogenic genomic characteristics of Staphylococcus aureus, associated with the severity of the disease; and Ana Tomás (NOVA Medical School) explained how biomarkers can be potential prognostic and predictive tools for cutaneous melanoma.   

In the field of materials, highlights included microbial-based biomaterials for drug delivery and skin health, presented by Filomena Freitas (NOVA FCT), as well as flexible electronic and bioelectronic skin devices, such as pressure sensors for health applications, presented by Rui Igreja (NOVA FCT).    

EUTOPIA Health Day 2025 thus showcased the profoundly multidisciplinary nature of skin research, reinforcing the importance of prevention, science and collaboration across different fields of knowledge.