M. Isabel A. M. Vasconcelos graduated in Chemical Engineering at the University of Porto, Portugal, in 1984, and got her M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in Biotechnology, option Microbiology, from the Institut National des Sciences Apliquées de Toulouse – France, in 1987 and 1991 respectively. She is Associate Professor at the Faculty of Biotechnology - Universidade Católica Portuguesa. She was Dean of the Faculty of Biotechnology from 2009 to 2011 and from 2013 to 2021 and was member of the Board since 1998. Currently she holds an appointment as Vice-Rector of Universidade Católica Portuguesa for Academic Affairs and Global Engagement. Her research interests include: microbial physiology (anaerobic bacteria physiology, yeasts physiology), namely focused on metabolic fluxes control, modification of fermentation patterns, synthesis of molecules with potential high value; development of biological processes for degradation of by-products or residues; synthesis of secondary metabolites by yeasts and bacteria. She coordinated and participated in several externally funded national and European research projects in the field of industrial biotechnology. She also supervised several externally funded research fellowships, including successfully concluded PhD theses and MSc theses. She published scientific papers in international peer-reviewed journals (Science Citation Index), was invited to give several lectures and participated in numerous national and international scientific meetings.