On November 7th, Marlene Lages, a doctoral fellow at ciTechCare, successfully defended her PhD Thesis entitled “Chronotype and circadian rhythms on dietary intake and metabolic homeostasis”, at the Faculty of Nutrition and Food Sciences of the University of Porto.
The study explored the relationship between food intake and the circadian system and revealed that the consumption of certain types of fat is associated with the expression of clock genes that regulate the body’s rhythms, affecting essential metabolic processes. These findings pave the way for the development of nutritional strategies that may optimize the functioning of our metabolism by adjusting eating patterns more effectively. Thus, through Marlene Lages’s doctoral project, it becomes clear that it is not only the quantity and quality of what we eat that matters—the time of day when we do so is also decisive.
Throughout her journey, ciTechCare highlights the various projects in which she was exemplary involved, such as NutriClock – Understanding the association between chronotype, mealtiming and circadian biomarkers, CBmeter – a medical device for screening metabolic diseases, Veggies4myheart, and FRUIGU: Fruit-based innovative gummies: a health-promoting and sustainable approach.
Marlene Lages also collaborated as a lecturer at the School of Health Sciences of Polytechnic of Leiria and was awarded several distinctions for her research on circadian profiles and individual chronotype associated with metabolic disorders, as well as in the study of Diabetes.
The examination committee was chaired by the Faculty Director, Professor Pedro Graça, and included as examiners Professors Cláudia Cavadas (Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Coimbra), Catarina Simões (Faculty of Health Sciences, Fernando Pessoa University), and Pedro Moreira (Faculty of Nutrition and Food Sciences, University of Porto). Representing the supervisory team—composed of Renata Barros (Faculty of Nutrition and Food Sciences, University of Porto), Sara Carmo-Silva (School of Health Technology of Coimbra, Polytechnic of Coimbra), and Maria Pedro Guarino—was Professor Maria Pedro Guarino, who is also the coordinator of ciTechCare.
