Specialisation in Science
DOCSCI-2025-01: Bioremediation Strategies for Wastewater Treatment
Water contamination from industrial, agricultural, and municipal waste is a growing global crisis. Traditional treatment methods can be expensive, energy-intensive, and produce toxic byproducts. Bioremediation offers a sustainable, eco-friendly alternative that aligns with global efforts toward circular economy and green technology. This research spans multiple disciplines: environmental science, microbiology/biotechnology, engineering (reactor design, pilot-scale implementation), and chemistry (biodegradation mechanisms, metabolic pathways).
Principal Supervisor: André Antunes (andre.antunes@usj.edu.mo)
Academic Unit: Institute of Science and Environment
Keywords: Wastewater, Bioremediation, Biotechnology
DOCSCI-2025-02: Nature-based solutions for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Macao SAR
Like many coastal cities, Macao faces increasing climate risks such as the urban heat island effect, flooding, and extreme weather events. This research aims to explore the potential of nature-based solutions (NbS) in addressing these challenges. It will specifically investigate the implementation of NbS strategies, such as the sponge city concept, which integrates green infrastructure elements like green roofs, rain gardens, bioswales, and wetlands to enhance urban resilience. Nature-based solutions are innovative approaches inspired by natural processes and ecosystem functions, offering sustainable and cost-effective solutions to societal and environmental challenges. The study will combine GIS-based spatial analysis, field experiments, and stakeholder interviews to provide insights into the feasibility of these solutions for Macao’s urban planning framework.
Principal Supervisor: Karen Tagulao (karentagulao@usj.edu.mo)
Academic Unit: Institute of Science and Environment
Keywords: Nature-based solutions, sponge city, wetlands, climate change
DOCSCI-2025-03: Epithelial Science and Organismal Physiology
Epithelium is the frontline protective barrier of the body, and epithelial integrity closely associates with physiological state and health status of multicellular organisms. Defects in epithelial function associate with a variety of pathological conditions and diseases in both animals, plants and some microorganisms. How cells ensure themselves to receive the necessary nutrients they need can directly impact epithelial physiology and, therefore, the state of the organism. Elucidating the science of cellular nutrition and epithelial cells can help us deepen our understanding of the biology of multicellular organisms with complex cellular structures, including health conditions in humans and other organisms. At USJ, we have established a close collaborative network with research institutions in mainland China and beyond, using an integrated cross-disciplinary approach combining with a wide range of technologies and methods, to delve into our understanding of epithelial function in health and disease of multicellular organisms.
Principal Supervisor: Winnie Shum (winnie.shum@usj.edu.mo)
Academic Unit: Institute of Science and Environment
Keywords: Epithelial science, epithelial cell biology, cell nutrients, human health
DOCSCI-2025-04: Environmental and Applied Microbiology
There are more bacteria in our oceans than stars in the Universe! Despite being the dominant life forms on Earth, our knowledge on microbes is still very limited (<1.0 % have been grown in the lab). Microbes play vital roles in the environment but much of their activity remains unassessed Furthermore, microbes are increasingly seen as vital in addressing major societal challenges: feeding, healing, and fuelling the World. Some of the most promising breakthroughs in biotechnology came from extreme environments and their microbial inhabitants. Innovation in biotechnology is hampered by our (in)ability to isolate new strains.
Recent research focuses on molecular-based methodologies, but added efforts are needed on isolating strains. Innovation in biotechnology is hampered by our (in)ability to isolate new strains. This project will survey microbial diversity in underexplored locations (ranging from deep-sea, to the Antarctic, to coastal sites in Asia, Africa, and Europe) and aims to isolate and characterise new strains and assess their ecological and biotechnological impact.
Principal Supervisor: André Antunes (andre.antunes@usj.edu.mo)
Academic Unit: Institute of Science and Environment
Keywords: Microbiology, Biotechnology, Biodiversity
DOCSCI-2025-05: Air Quality Modelling and Monitoring
Air Quality Modelling and Monitoring are fundamental for air quality research. Air Quality Modelling is a research topic that studies various methods to predict air quality for the next couple of days, including deterministic models, statistical models, and machine learning models. On the other hand, Air Quality Monitoring is a research topic that can be performed using various equipment, such as EPA equivalent reference machines, portable handheld devices, passive samplers, and low-cost sensors. At USJ, we would utilise both modelling and monitoring methods as important tools to manage the air quality in Macao, which are essential for the well-being of our community.
Principal Supervisor: Thomas Lei (thomas.lei@usj.edu.mo)
Academic Unit: Institute of Science and Environment
Keywords: air quality, air quality monitoring, air quality modelling
DOCSCI-2025-06: Microbe-mineral interactions: Environment and Biotechnology
The precipitation of carbonate biominerals by microorganisms is a field that has been attracting considerable interest. They can be used for a wide-range of applications, including civil engineering, historical restoration activities, soil improvement, carbon sequestration, and bioremediation. Their production seems to be a by-product of microbial metabolism, but there are still significant gaps in our understanding of this process. Testing for production of biominerals is not standardized, which makes it difficult to compare results from different studies, and many known microbes have never been tested.
This project proposes to obtain new insights into the production of biominerals and their application via a multi-sided approach that can include isolation of new strains, characterization of biominerals, study of the effects of environmental conditions, and assessment of impact in biotechnological applications. Data from microbiological and mineralogical analysis will be combined with images of the crystals (stereo-, optical-, and electron-microscopy), and analysed using computational-assisted methods.
Principal Supervisor: André Antunes (andre.antunes@usj.edu.mo)
Academic Unit: Institute of Science and Environment
Keywords: Microbiology, Biotechnology, Biominerals
DOCSCI-2025-07: Gut-brain modulation of behaviour
The discovery that gut bacteria can influence brain function and behaviour has opened exciting new research avenues and led to innovative clinical applications in brain health. However, the precise mechanisms underlying this communication are only now beginning to be uncovered. This project will investigate the gut-brain connection using the Siamese fighting fish (Betta splendens) as a model, focusing on the influence of gut microbiota on social behaviour, particularly aggression and stress regulation. By integrating microbiology, molecular biology, and neuroscience, the study will explore how gut microbiota composition and metabolic signaling modulate neural and endocrine pathways involved in social interactions. These findings will provide broader insights into the role of gut-derived signals in shaping social and stress-related behaviors across vertebrates. The selected candidate will work within a multidisciplinary research team as part of a project funded by the Macao Science and Technology Development Fund (FDCT), with the possibility of conducting part of the work in Portugal under a cotutelle scheme.
Principal Supervisor: David Manuel Flores Gonçalves (david.goncalves@usj.edu.mo)
Academic Unit: Institute of Science and Environment
Keywords: microbiota, gut-brain axis, aggression, stress
DOCSCI-2025-08: Neural mechanisms of aggression
Aggression is a fundamental behaviour with deep evolutionary roots, yet its neural mechanisms remain incompletely understood. The Siamese fighting fish (Betta splendens) provides an ideal model for investigating aggression due to its natural high aggression levels, exacerbated by long-term artificial selection for winning. This project aims to take advantage of the comparison between fighter lines, selectively bred for high aggression, and wild-type lines, which retain natural levels of aggression, to map the neural circuitry and possible neuromodulators responsible for aggressive behaviour. The work will include the application of state-of-the-art methods in neuroscience, including calcium imaging, genetic manipulation and endocrine profiling, providing a solid training in these techniques. Understanding how aggression is modulated in a well-established fish model will provide broader insights into the proximate and evolutionary mechanisms of aggression across vertebrates. There is the possibility to develop part of the work in Portugal under a cotutelle scheme.
Principal Supervisor: David Manuel Flores Gonçalves (david.goncalves@usj.edu.mo)
Academic Unit: Institute of Science and Environment
Keywords: Aggression, androgens, brain, Betta splendens
DOCSCI-2025-09: Stress tolerance as a phenotypic trait
Stress tolerance is the ability of an organism to withstand, adapt to, and recover from stressors while maintaining physiological and behavioural stability. This project will investigate whether stress tolerance can be considered a phenotypic trait, with some individuals displaying greater resilience to stressors, independent of their nature. The focus will be on environmental stress adaptation, particularly in the marine environment, where organisms face increasing challenges such as ocean acidification, rising temperatures, and hypoxia.
Using the marine medaka (Oryzias melastigma), a model species well-suited for laboratory experiments, the project will develop artificially selected lines for high and low stress tolerance. Through controlled exposure experiments, it will assess whether tolerance to one stressor translates into generalized resilience to others. Additionally, the study will investigate the genetic and neuroendocrine mechanisms underlying interindividual variability in stress tolerance, aiming to identify physiological and molecular markers of resilience. By uncovering the mechanisms driving stress tolerance, this research will provide key insights into adaptive plasticity and population resilience in response to global environmental change. The selected candidate will work within a multidisciplinary research team as part of a project funded by the Macao Science and Technology Development Fund (FDCT).
Principal Supervisor: David Manuel Flores Gonçalves (david.goncalves@usj.edu.mo)
Academic Unit: Institute of Science and Environment
Keywords: stress, phenotypic plasticity, marine medaka, global change
