Month: November 2025

The One Health PhD Forum, organized by the ICBAS One Health office since 2024, brings together students from all ICBAS doctoral programmes to foster dialogue and collaboration around One Health. The event annually recognises the best presentations with travel grants — €1,000 for the best oral presentation and €300 for the best poster — enabling the recipients to gain new skills, meet other research teams, and enhance their training. Three students have recently returned from placements and conferences made possible by these grants.

The first edition of the meeting, in 2024, awarded Carla Sousa for the best poster presentation. The student from the Doctoral Programme in Animal Science completed a two-month placement at Sapienza Università di Roma, as part of a team dedicated to studying parasites in fish and their impact on public health. The experience allowed them to work with advanced Anisakis parasite identification and genetic analysis techniques ,attend scientific seminars, and learn more about the risks associated with fish consumption. ‘It was an extremely rewarding experience, both scientifically and personally. I was very warmly welcomed and learned a great deal.’

In 2025, the best poster at the II One Health PhD Forum was awarded to Diana Freitas, a student from the Doctoral Programme in Aquatic Sciences – Biology and Ecology. With the support of the grant, she attended the conference Aquaculture Europe 2025, in Valencia, where she presented her work on the effect of temperature changes on limpet fertilisation (Patella ordinária). 'Without the award, participation would not have been possible, as funding available for doctoral students is very limited. It was a very positive experience.'

The winner of the best oral presentation in 2025, Catarina Aluai-Cunha, a student from the Doctoral Programme in Veterinary Sciences, undertook a one-week scientific visit to University of Copenhagen. “The stay allowed me to engage with experts in the field of animal microbiome and immunology, observe laboratory activities, and participate in team meetings. ‘I return with new knowledge, fond memories, and great motivation. It was an excellent opportunity".

These three experiences demonstrate the positive impact of the grants from the One Health PhD Forum, which have enabled ICBAS doctoral students to enhance their training, build new international connections, and conduct research relevant to human, animal, and environmental health.

Images: ICBAS

On 8 November 2025, the Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar (ICBAS) of the University of Porto celebrated, for the fifth consecutive year, the International One Health Day, promoting activities for all ages that explored health in an integrated way across the environment, plants, animals and people. The event combined hands-on workshops, scientific presentations and a multidisciplinary round table.

The activities for younger participants included observing parasites under the microscope, exploring beach pollution and understanding the impact of the environment on health. Carolina, aged 10, who took part in the workshop “Discovering Zoonotic Diseases”, said: “I really enjoyed seeing the parasites under the microscope and understanding how they affect our health. It was fun to learn while doing the experiments.”

For adults, the session “The Future of Science: One Health in Action” featured research on the microbiome of dogs with cancer, the effects of noise on people with autism and schizophrenia, the impact of climate change on the viability of limpets, and nursing care in adventure sports.

The event concluded with a round table on urban health, where specialists from various fields reflected on habitability, air quality, life with companion animals and urban pests. For Adriano A. Bordalo e Sá, coordinator of the ICBAS One Health Office, this edition was “a clear success”, strengthening scientific literacy and the understanding that human, animal and environmental health are deeply interconnected.

Images: ICBAS

Read the UP News article here.