MSCA-PF 2026
We're welcoming expressions of interest in 5 main research areas, as described below.
Aquaculture & Sustainable Management
Fish microbiomes at the nutrition interface
Keywords: fish microbiome; nutrition; host-microbe interactions
Supervisor: Sofia Engrola
Climate-resilient kelp aquaculture
Keywords: kelp aquaculture; climate resilience
Supervisor: Neusa Martins
Cellular aquaculture tools for cultivated seafood
Keywords: cellular aquaculture; cell lines; cultivated seafood
Supervisor: Vincent Laizé
Microbial services in multitrophic aquaculture
Keywords: multitrophic aquaculture; microbiome; microbial services
Supervisor: Aschwin Engelen
Climate Change, Paleoceanography & Ocean Processes
Global biodiversity patterns under anthropogenic climate change
Keywords: biodiversity modelling; climate change; macroecology
Supervisor: Jorge Assis
Kelp responses to marine heatwaves across life stages: rapid evolution and resilience
Keywords: marine heatwaves; kelp; resilience
Supervisor: Neusa Martins
Fish physiology under heatwaves and hypoxia
Keywords: fish physiology; heatwaves; hypoxia
Supervisor: Pedro Guerreiro
Integrated assessment of multiple anthropogenic stressors on marine ecosystems
Keywords: ecotoxicology; ocean alkalinity enhancement; biogeochemistry
Supervisor: Caio Ribeiro
Effects of climate change on seagrass carbon uptake and sequestration
Keywords: seagrass; carbon sequestration; climate change
The role of crustose coralline algae (CCA) in marine carbon budgets
Keywords: coralline algae; carbon budgets
Alkalinity enhancement and its climate mitigation potential
Keywords: alkalinity enhancement; climate mitigation
Supervisor: João Silva
Understanding oxygen level changes in the deep ocean using micropaleontological and geochemical tracers
Keywords: deep ocean; oxygen change; paleoceanography
Mapping ecosystem changes in the past (surface or deep ocean; productivity; microfossils)
Keywords: paleoecology; productivity; microfossils
Supervisor: Antje Voelker
Wildfires impact on ocean ecosystems via: Pyrogenic Carbon analyses approach; Remote Sensing framework; or Ocean Observation Systems
Keywords: wildfires; pyrogenic carbon; ocean observation
Supervisor: Lívia Gebara
Mesoscale dynamics in the Gulf of Cadiz
Keywords: mesoscale dynamics; Gulf of Cadiz; physical oceanography
Supervisor: Paulo Relvas
Building a Coherent North Atlantic SST Framework to Decode Ocean–Atmosphere Dynamics Across Orbital / Millenniall Timescales.
North Atlantic; sea-surface temperature; ocean-atmosphere dynamics
Supervisor: Teresa Rodrigues
Genomics & Microbial Interaction
Global population genomics of kelp forests under climate change
Keywords: kelp forests; population genomics; climate change
Adaptive evolution and environmental genomics of marine forests from pole to pole
Keywords: marine forests; adaptation; environmental genomics
Evolutionary history and global biogeography of marine forests using phylogenomics
Keywords: phylogenomics; biogeography; marine forests
Supervisor: Gareth Pearson
Climate-driven genetic erosion in marine forests across global biogeographic regions
Keywords: genetic erosion; marine forests; climate change
Restoration genomics of seagrass: linking genetic diversity to restoration
Keywords: seagrass; restoration genomics; biodiversity
Develpment of "restoration-grade" seagrass populations in artificial earthen-pond systems
Keywords: seagrass restoration; propagation
Supervisor: João Neiva
Restoration genomics of marine animal forests: linking genetic diversity to restoration success
Keywords: animal forests; restoration genomics; conservation
Supervisor: Márcio Coelho
Evolutionary mechanisms behind the invasive potential in freshwater fish to establish predictive scenarios of “winners and losers” and forecast habitat suitability
Keywords: invasive fish; eco-evolution; genomics
Supervisor: Pedro Guerreiro
Rugulopteryx microbiome application
Keywords: Rugulopteryx; microbiome; biotechnology
Caulerpa hologenomes
Keywords: Caulerpa; hologenomics; invasive algae
Seagrass microbiome
Keywords: seagrass; microbiome
Coral microbiomes
Keywords: coral reefs; microbiome
Supervisor: Aschwin Engelen
Marine Biotechnology, Biomedicine & Biomaterials
Environmental (bio)remediation
Keywords: bioremediation; environmental technologies
Supervisor: Maria Clara Costa
Vitamin K1 and Novel Bioactives from the invasive Rugulopteryx okamurae for nutraceutical and cosmetic applications
Keywords: Rugulopteryx; vitamin K1; nutraceuticals
Supervisor: Dina Simes
Next-generation marine bioengineering for therapeutics
Keywords: nanomedicine; drug delivery; biomaterials
Advanced nanomedicines for targeted therapy
Keywords: nanomedicine; controlled release; translational biomaterials
Supervisor: Pedro Fonte
Develop inhalable antiviral therapies based on marine materials, to address respiratory viral infections
Keywords: antivirals; inhalation; marine biomaterials
Supervisor: Ana Grenha
Methodologies for removing biotoxins from marine systems and potential impacts on organisms.
Keywords: biotoxins; remediation; marine chemistry
Supervisor: Joana F. Leal
Develop innovative marine biotechnology solutions from coastal biodiversity, halophytes, and microbiomes for sustainability and the blue bioeconomy.
Keywords: marine biotechnology; halophytes; microbiome
