Dr. Sandra Alves

Dr. Sandra Alves has a degree in Biology (1995), a master's in Applied Human Genetics (1997), and a PhD in Biology (2002) from the Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto, with a focus on population genetics and pharmacogenetics. From 2002 to 2004, she was a postdoc at IPATIMUP/University of Porto and an assistant professor at Jean Piaget Higher School of Health. In 2004, she became an auxiliary researcher in the Department of Human Genetics at the Instituto Nacional de Saúde Dr. Ricardo Jorge (INSA), Porto, and Head of the Lysosomal Storage Diseases Research Group in 2009. Presently, her group has integrated the FCT Research Unit, Center for the Study of Animal Science (CECA), from ICETA-University of Porto. Sandra Alves is also responsible for the thematic line, Inherited metabolic diseases in humans and animals: mechanisms and therapies. Since 2013, she has been the INSA's representative in the Portuguese Commission for the Treatment of Lysosomal Storage Diseases, and since 2019, she has been the INSA's representative in the European Joint Programme on Rare Diseases and coordinator of the National Mirror Group of this Programme in Portugal. Since 2020, she has been a member of the Associated Laboratory Al4AnimalS. Her scientific activity has been developed in the human genetics field, with a major focus on inherited metabolic diseases.