Paula Videira is the leader of the Glycoimmunology Research Group at UCIBIO and an Associate Professor with habilitation in Immunology and Glycobiology at the Life Sciences Department of NOVA School of Science and Technology, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa (NOVA-FCT, PT). She is highly motivated to understand the complex roles of glycans in diseases and is dedicated to translating Glycosciences into innovative glycan-based immunotherapies, focusing on patient needs.
Paula has published 108 research papers and four patents as the principal investigator. She has secured nearly 4.5 million EUR for research and an additional 1.4 million EUR to spin off her technology, including prestigious EU grants (Twinning, MSCA, EJPRD), awards, and research agreements with biopharmaceutical companies.
Paula served on the Scientific Council of COST and is currently part of the International Advisory Board of the Slovak Academy of Sciences and RD-Portugal. She is also a member of the editorial board of Scientific Reports and serves as a guest editor and reviewer for several journals and international research applications.
Paula co-founded the CDG & Allies-PPAIN, a unique patient-centric network of 40 professionals and patient associations worldwide, dedicated to fostering research and raising awareness about rare glycosylation disorders. This network has produced multiple outcomes, including medical guidelines and accessible documents for the general public.
In 2019, she co-founded CellmAbs, a biopharmaceutical company developing immuno-oncology agents targeting tumor glycans. The company has won several awards, secured investments, and in 2024 completed a landmark negotiation with a major pharmaceutical company to advance its technology into clinical trials. That same year, she co-founded Valvian, a biopharmaceutical focused on AI-driven immune therapies.
Paula’s research is highly multidisciplinary, employing cutting-edge in vitro and in vivo assays, omics, glycomics, bioinformatic tools, and patient-centric approaches to translate scientific findings into tangible benefits for patients.