Fhernanda Ribeiro Smiderle is a researcher and professor at the Research Institute Pelé Pequeno Príncipe. She graduated with a degree in biology (2006) and got her MSc (2008) and PhD (2012) degrees in biochemistry. She has completed five years of post-doc in a renowned carbohydrate chemistry research group (UFPR) in Brazil, and one year at Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, in Spain. Her expertise is carbohydrate chemistry, with an emphasis on the structural characterization of polysaccharides (GC-MS, NMR, HPSEC-MALLS) and their extraction and purification using environment-friendly techniques (PLE, SFE, microwave, microfiltration, and reverse osmosis). The focus of her research seeks to obtain and identify components from natural sources such as fungi and plants, as well as to apply them therapeutically, especially to improve the capacity of the immune system. Her research interests include edible mushrooms; purification and characterization of beta-glucans, galactofuranomannas, xylomannans, and other polysaccharides; submerged culture of mushrooms; cell culture; and bioactivity of polysaccharides.