Biography

I am a driven analytical chemist with research interests and expertise toward the development and validation of analytical methods for mass spectrometry-based techniques. During my career I have been involved in several projects from distinct scientific disciplines, developing a strong background in metal speciation, proteomics, toxicology, nanotoxicology, and lipidomics. I have significant experience in several instrumental techniques such as LC-MS, GC-MS, GC-FID, MALDI-TOF/TOF-MS, QTOF-MS, ET-AAS, and F-AAS.

In 2015 I moved to the USA and became a researcher at UT Southwestern Medical Center. Here I have worked in the development of direct-infusion based MS/MSALL workflow for broad-scale lipids profiling of biological samples. This is a fast and robust high-throughput method to deliver the complete sample lipidome profile in 3 minutes. Moreover, dedicated software was developed for data processing and analysis. The automated front to back-end workflow allows users to easily obtain quality data, ranging from individual species to compositional information, fatty acid assignments, and profiling. 

 The lipidomics field has become crucial in the study of the biochemical mechanisms underlying lipid-related physiological and pathological processes. Developments of new MS instruments with higher resolution and sensitivity have largely fueled this discipline over the years. My research interests are the development and optimization of new sample preparation techniques and MS-based methods for lipidomic analysis.

 

Education

Graduate School
University Nova Lisbea (2011), Biochemistry

Research Interest

  • Advanced sample preparation techniques
  • Lipidomics
  • Mass Spectrometry

Publications

Featured Publications LegendFeatured Publications

Endocannabinoids Inhibit the Induction of Virulence in Enteric Pathogens.
Ellermann M, Pacheco AR, Jimenez AG, Russell RM, Cuesta S, Kumar A, Zhu W, Vale G, Martin SA, Raj P, McDonald JG, Winter SE, Sperandio V, Cell 2020 Oct 183 3 650-665.e15
An implanted port-catheter system for repeated hepatic arterial infusion of low-density lipoprotein-docosahexaenoic acid nanoparticles in normal rats: A safety study.
Wang Y, Li J, Subramaniyan I, do Vale GD, Chaudhary J, Anwar A, Wight-Carter M, McDonald JG, Putnam WC, Qin T, Zhang H, Corbin IR, Toxicol. Appl. Pharmacol. 2020 Aug 400 115037
Vibrio deploys type 2 secreted lipase to esterify cholesterol with host fatty acids and mediate cell egress.
Chimalapati S, de Souza Santos M, Lafrance AE, Ray A, Lee WR, Rivera-Cancel G, Vale G, Pawlowski K, Mitsche MA, McDonald JG, Liou J, Orth K, Elife 2020 08 9
Last step in the path of LDL cholesterol from lysosome to plasma membrane to ER is governed by phosphatidylserine.
Trinh MN, Brown MS, Goldstein JL, Han J, Vale G, McDonald JG, Seemann J, Mendell JT, Lu F, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 2020 Jul
Mitochondrial Substrate Utilization Regulates Cardiomyocyte Cell Cycle Progression.
Cardoso AC, Lam NT, Savla JJ, Nakada Y, Pereira AHM, Elnwasany A, Menendez-Montes I, Ensley EL, Petric UB, Sharma G, Sherry AD, Malloy CR, Khemtong C, Kinter MT, Tan WLW, Anene-Nzelu CG, Foo RS, Nguyen NUN, Li S, Ahmed MS, Elhelaly WM, Abdisalaam S, Asaithamby A, Xing C, Kanchwala M, Vale G, Eckert KM, Mitsche MA, McDonald JG, Hill JA, Huang L, Shaul PW, Szweda LI, Sadek HA, Nat Metab 2020 Feb 2 2 167-178
Drosophila Snazarus Regulates a Lipid Droplet Population at Plasma Membrane-Droplet Contacts in Adipocytes.
Ugrankar R, Bowerman J, Hariri H, Chandra M, Chen K, Bossanyi MF, Datta S, Rogers S, Eckert KM, Vale G, Victoria A, Fresquez J, McDonald JG, Jean S, Collins BM, Henne WM, Dev. Cell 2019 Aug
Functional Assessment of Lipoyltransferase-1 Deficiency in Cells, Mice, and Humans.
Ni M, Solmonson A, Pan C, Yang C, Li D, Notzon A, Cai L, Guevara G, Zacharias LG, Faubert B, Vu HS, Jiang L, Ko B, Morales NM, Pei J, Vale G, Rakheja D, Grishin NV, McDonald JG, Gotway GK, McNutt MC, Pascual JM, DeBerardinis RJ, Cell Rep 2019 Apr 27 5 1376-1386.e6
Three Phase Liquid Extraction (3PLE): A Simple, and Fast Method for Lipidomic Workflows.
Vale G, Martin SA, Mitsche MA, Thompson BM, Eckert KM, McDonald JG J. Lipid Res. 2019 Jan
Effects of nanoparticles in species of aquaculture interest.
Khosravi-Katuli K, Prato E, Lofrano G, Guida M, Vale G, Libralato G Environ Sci Pollut Res Int 2017 Jul 24 21 17326-17346
Manufactured nanoparticles in the aquatic environment-biochemical responses on freshwater organisms: A critical overview.
Vale G, Mehennaoui K, Cambier S, Libralato G, Jomini S, Domingos RF Aquat. Toxicol. 2016 Jan 170 162-74

Honors & Awards

  • Chemistry, fate and ecotoxicology of nanoparticles in freshwater bivalves
    Postdoctoral grant awarded by the Portuguese foundation for Science and Technology (2011-2015)
  • Freshwater arsenic detoxification through selenium food supplements: A Proteomics approach
    Ph.D. grant awarded by the Portuguese foundation for Science and Technology (2007-2011)

Professional Associations/Affiliations

  • American Society for Mass Spectrometry (2015)