Professor Doutor Nuno Sousa

Short Biographical Note
Nuno Sousa (born in 1968, MD, PhD) is Full Professor at the School of Health Science, University of Minho. He is
the Director of the Medical Degree at University of Minho. He serves at several medical education and medical
assessment advisory boards (NBME, EuroBMA). He is a NeuroRadiologist. Presently, he is the Director of the
Clinical Academic Center at Hospital de Braga.
He is the Coordinator of the Neuroscience Research Domain at ICVS/University of Minho. His research main
interests are focused in the establishment of functional and structural correlations mediated by stress and its
implications in neuropsychiatric disorders. Detailed assessment of neuroplastic events, incorporation of newly
generated cells into neuronal networks, rearrangements of established dendritic and synaptic contacts, combined
with behavioural, neurochemical and electrophysiogical, optogenetic and molecular biology and (epi)genetics
correlates have been established in his laboratory; the work from the lab covers from basic to clinical research and
several modulatory interventions have also been described in order to promote recovery of structure and function in
neuronal tissues.
Nuno Sousa has published more than 175 peer-reviewed research articles; H factor = 33. In addition to academic
merits, Nuno Sousa serves on several science policy and advisory board positions, and as an Ad hoc reviewer for
various neuroscience journal and international funding organizations.
He is Editor-in-Chief of Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience and Associate Editor of Molecular Neurodegeneration.
Since May 2011 Nuno Sousa is also the President of the Portuguese Society for Neuroscience.
Honors and Prizes
Grunenthal Prize 2003 – Grunenthal Foundation
Grunenthal Prize 2007 – Grunenthal Foundation
2010 Prize of the Portuguese Society of Human Genetics
Gold Medal of the Minister of Health, 2011
Janssen Neuroscience Prize, 2012
10 Selected Peer-reviewed Publications in last 5 year (Selected from 182 peer-reviewed publications;
H-factor-33)
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N. Sousa, N. Lukoyanov, M.D. Madeira, O.F.X. Almeida, M.M. Paula-Barbosa. Reorganization of the morphology
of hippocampal neurites and synapses after stress-induced damage correlates with behavioral improvement.
Neuroscience, 97: 253-266, 2000. 365 citations
J.J. Cerqueira, F. Maillet, O.F.X. Almeida, T.M. Jay, N. Sousa. The prefrontal cortex as a key target of the
maladaptive response to stress. Journal of Neuroscience 27:2781-2787, 2007. 202 citations
E Dias-Ferreira, JC Sousa, I Melo, P Morgado, AR Mesquita, JJ Cerqueira, RM Costa, N Sousa. Chronic stress
causes frontostriatal reorganization and affects decision-making. Science, 325:621-5, 2009. 195 citations.
JM. Bessa, D. Ferreira, I. Melo, F. Marques, JJ. Cerqueira, JA Palha, OFX. Almeida, N. Sousa. The moodimproving actions of antidepressants do not depend on neurogenesis but are associated with neuronal
remodeling. Molecular Psychiatry 14:764-73 2009. 151 citations
J.J. Cerqueira, J.M. Pêgo, R. Taipa, J.M. Bessa, O.F.X. Almeida, N. Sousa. Morphological correlates of
corticosteroid-induced changes in prefrontal cortex-dependent behaviors. Journal of Neuroscience 25:77927800, 2005. 132 citations
C Catania, I Sotiropoulos, R Silva, C Onofri, KC Breen, N Sousa, OFX Almeida. The amyloidogenic potential and
behavioral correlates of stress. Molecular Psychiatry 14:95-105, 2009. 56 citations
S Yu, A Patchev, Y Wu, J Lu, F Holsboer, J-Z Zhang, N Sousa, OFX Almeida. Depletion of the neural precursor
cell pool by glucocorticoids. Annals Neurol, 67:21-30, 2010. 38 citations
I Sotiropoulos, C Catania, LG Pinto, R Silva, GE Pollerberg, A Takashima, N Sousa, OFX Almeida. Stress acts
cumulatively to precipitate Alzheimer's disease-like tau pathology and cognitive deficits. J Neurosci. 31:7840-7,
2011. 35 citations
JM Soares, A Sampaio, LM Ferreira, NC Santos, F Marques, JA Palha, JJ Cerqueira, N Sousa. Stress-induced
changes in human decision-making are reversible. Translational Psychiat, 2:e131, 2012. 9 citations
Lima A, Sardinha VM, Oliveira AF, Reis M, Mota C, Silva MA, Marques F, Cerqueira JJ, Pinto L, Sousa N,
Oliveira JF. Astrocyte pathology in the prefrontal cortex impairs the cognitive function of rats. Mol Psychiatry.
2014 (in press).
4) Funding as principal investigator.
Grant
category
Funding organization
Funding program
Start date
End date
Estimated
value (in
EUR)
International
International
European Comission
European Comission
FP7 - Cooperation
FP7 - People
01-02-2011
01-12-2012
31-01-2015
30-11-2014
1,007,000
153,047
National
Quadro de Referência Estratégico
Programa Operacional Fatores de
Nacional (QREN)
Competitividade (COMPETE)
Quadro de Referência Estratégico
Programa Operacional
Nacional (QREN)
Regional do Norte (ON.2)
Fundação para a Ciência e a TecnologiaProtocol of Collaboration
(FCT) and Agence Nationale de la
between FCT and ANR
Recherche (ANR)
01-09-2011
31-08-2015
1,379,338
01-01-2013
30-06-2015
825,898
02.05.2013
01.05.2016
159,843
National
Bilateral
Cooperation

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