Team
The team of the Laboratory of Microbial Biomolecules (LBM) is composed of researchers with multidisciplinary backgrounds, at levels ranging from undergraduate research to postdoctoral training, ensuring high scientific rigor and technological innovation. Under the coordination of Prof. Dr. Ricardo P. S. Oliveira, the group works in an integrated manner across areas that include applied microbiology, purification and characterization of biomolecules, microencapsulation, process optimization, genomic analyses, and in vivo assays in different animal models. This approach enables the high-quality training of human resources with scientific and social impact.
Prof. Dr. Ricardo Pinheiro de Souza Oliveira, P.I.
Prof. Dr. Oliveira leads a research group dedicated to the discovery and development of innovative strategies to address the urgent global challenge of antimicrobial resistance, with applications in both human health and the agro-industrial sector. His group has extensive and well-recognized expertise in the identification and characterization of antimicrobial peptides and beneficial probiotic bacteria, offering sustainable alternatives to the use of antibiotics in human health and agro-industry.
Dr. Marcos Camargo Knirsch, Laboratory Technician
He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Pharmacy and Biochemistry from the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of São Paulo (USP) (2008), a Master’s degree in Biochemical-Pharmaceutical Technology from USP (2011), a PhD in Biochemical-Pharmaceutical Technology from the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, USP (2015), and a PhD in Chemical, Materials, and Process Engineering from DICCA, Università degli Studi di Genova (2015). His main areas of activity include Chemical-Pharmaceutical Technology, Biomaterials, and Fermentation Technology. Since July 2024, he has been serving as a technical-administrative staff member, in the position of Pharmacist, at the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of São Paulo.
Dra. Ana Clara Candelaria Cucick, Postdoctoral Fellow
Lactic acid bacteria, probiotics, antimicrobial peptides, bioprospecting, fermentation.
PhD and Master’s degrees in Food Science from the University of São Paulo (USP), with expertise in food microbiology and biotechnology. She conducts research on lactic acid bacteria, including strain bioprospecting, biosafety assessment, production of antimicrobial peptides and vitamins, as well as functionality studies in in vivo and human models. She completed a sandwich PhD internship at the Technical University of Munich (TUM), Germany, working on vitamin quantification, bioprocesses, probiotics, development of bioproducts applied to the food and pharmaceutical sectors, and clinical trials of bioavailability.
Dr. Carlos Emilio Cabrera Matajira, Postdoctoral Fellow
Microorganisms of veterinary medical interest, both beneficial and pathogenic, and their epidemiological and molecular interactions.
Veterinarian and animal scientist (UCC- Colombia), with a Master’s and PhD in Sciences from the University of São Paulo (USP), he worked during his postgraduate traning with experimental epidemiology and veterinary microbiology, with an emphasis on the integrated study of pathogens of importance to animal health. In parallel, he conducts research on functional bacteria of veterinary interest, addressing bioprospecting, safety assessment and application in animal models. He also has academic and administrative experience as Director of the Veterinary Medicine program and as a university professor in the areas of veterinary microbiology and infectious diseases.
Dr. Wellisson Amorim Pereira, Postdoctoral Fellow
Biotechnological application of probiotic microorganisms and microbial biomolecules in aquatic models, with a focus on zootechnical performance, animal health, and food safety.
Biomedical scientist and researcher with expertise in applied microbiology, biotechnology, and animal experimentation. He is currently a postdoctoral researcher at the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of São Paulo (USP), supported by FAPESP. He holds a dual PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences from USP and the Universidad de La Frontera (Chile), as well as a specialization in Project Management from USP. He has international research experience at the University of Copenhagen (Denmark), the Catholic University of Temuco (Chile), and the University of Porto (Portugal). He has also been involved in academic supervision, microbiology teaching, and outreach projects in health and education. His research focuses on probiotic bacteria, antimicrobial activity, and alternative therapies/diets in in vivo aquatic models.
Dr. Elionio Galvão Frota, Researcher.
Applied microbiology for the production of biomolecules of pharmaceutical and food interest, and bioprocesses. Microencapsulation of bioactive compounds.
Graduate in Food Technology from IFMA, with experience in the beverage, oils, by-products, and food analysis sectors, including a sandwich undergraduate program at the Università degli Studi di Milano (CAPES). He earned a Master’s degree in Food Science and Technology from UPF, where he conducted research on enzyme immobilization (CAPES) and microencapsulation of bioactive compounds, focusing on the protection and application of yerba mate compounds (CNPq). He is currently a member of research groups at the University of São Paulo (USP), the Fisheries Institute of São Paulo, and the Institute for Technological Research (IPT), working on microbial biomolecules, aquaculture health, and spray-drying processes, microencapsulation, and electrospinning, with support from FAPESP.
Dra. Taís Mayumi Kuniyoshi, Collaborating Researcher.
Applied microbiology.
She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biology from the State University of Campinas (2006), a Master’s degree in Environmental Engineering from the University of Zaragoza (2010), and a PhD from the Interunits Graduate Program in Biotechnology at the University of São Paulo, including a sandwich PhD at the University of Montreal. She completed postdoctoral training in the Department of Technology at the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, USP, and at Teagasc (Ireland). She also worked for more than three years as a science and research analyst/specialist at Yakult S/A. Currently, she is a Collaborating Researcher at FCF/USP, where she coordinates the project “Development and evaluation of feed additives for application in aquaculture,” funded by the prestigious Knowledge Brazil – Attraction and Retention of Talents Program (CNPq).
Fernando Moises Mamami Sanca, PhD Candidate.
Microorganism Bioprospecting and Antimicrobial Peptide Production: Encompasses the discovery and characterization of probiotic bacteria, the identification of bacteriocinogenic peptides, and Up-scaling production processes using bioreactors.
PhD candidate in Chemical-Pharmaceutical Technology at the University of São Paulo (USP), supported by CAPES. He is a professional with solid experience in Microbiology, Molecular Biology (including transcriptomics), peptide purification and ecology.
His current research focuses on Applied Microbiology, with an emphasis on bioprospecting and the study of the antimicrobial potential of peptides, including their applications as antibacterial molecules in the agro-industrial sector. He holds a Master’s degree in Microbiology and a Bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences from the Peruvian University Cayetano Heredia (UPCH), with his degree officially recognized in Brazil by USP.
Iago Rodrigues Blanco, PhD Candidate.
Genomics, Bioinformatics, Computational Biology
Biotechnologist graduated from the Federal University of Pará. He holds an MBA in Project Management from USP/ESALQ and is a PhD candidate in the Graduate Program in Biochemical-Pharmaceutical Technology at the University of São Paulo (FCF/USP), including a sandwich period at the University of Coimbra, Portugal. He has skills in the areas of molecular biology, microbiology, genomics, and bioinformatics, with an emphasis on the application of computational biology tools to genomics.
Sebastián Bermúdez Puga, PhD Candidate.
PhD candidate at the University of São Paulo, supported by FAPESP (grants 2022/02936-2 and 2023/12831-6). Researcher with solid experience in the field of peptide and protein biochemistry, encompassing the broad spectrum of action of antimicrobial peptides and their applications as antibacterial, antifungal, antiparasitic, and anticancer molecules. In 2024, he carried out a sandwich PhD at the laboratory of Dr. Simon Moore at Queen Mary University of London, where he deepened his expertise in cell-free synthetic biology to accelerate the development of peptide-based antimicrobial agents.
Yennifer Lizeth Ignacion Leon, PhD Candidate.
Genomic Mining of Bacterial Genomes.
PhD candidate in Biochemical-Pharmaceutical Technology at the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of São Paulo (USP), working in the field of Fermentation Technology. She holds a degree in Microbiology and Parasitology from the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos (UNMSM), with solid training in applied microbiology, molecular biology, and bacterial genomics.
Her current research focuses on genomic mining of bacterial genomes, using bioinformatics tools to identify and characterize potentially biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs), especially those related to the production of bacteriocins and other metabolites of biotechnological interest. She has previous experience as a research assistant at the Molecular Biology and Genetics Laboratory of UNMSM, where she standardized PCR protocols and actively participated in the isolation and genomic characterization of Enterobacteriaceae of animal origin. Her main research interests include probiotics, bacteriocins, microbial metabolites, antimicrobial resistance, and applications of NGS in microbiological research.