Departamento de Química, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade Nova de Lisboa
REQUIMTE - Associate Laboratory for Green Chemistry
office 402-B, tel. +351212948300, ext. 10923
email: lima@fct.unl.pt

short CV / research interests:

I was born in Quelimane, Mozambique at the 22nd July 1965 and finished the degree in Applied Chemistry (Branch of Organic Chemistry) at the  Univ. Nova de Lisboa in 1990. I have obtained my PhD in Physical Chemistry in 1996, at the Instituto Superior Técnico (IST) working with  António Maçanita. After that I held a postdoctoral position from 1996 to 2000 at the Institute of Chemical and Biological Technology (ITQB). During this period I have gain expertise in time resolved fluorescence spectroscopy (Picosecond Time Correlated Single Photon Counting) and I had two short stays in the laboratories of Prof. Fausto Elisei (Department of Chemistry, University of Perugia, Italy) and Prof. Frank Quina (Institute of Chemistry, University of São Paulo, Brazil) to gain experience in time Nanosecond Laser Flash Photolysis.

In 2000 I have win an Assistant Professor position at the Department of Chemistry of the Faculty of Science and Technology of the Univ. Nova de Lisboa (FCT-UNL) and I integrated the Photochemistry and Supramolecular Chemistry group of REQUIMTE, Associated Laboratory for Sustainable Chemistry.

I started to do research in fluorescence sensing and become interested in multiplexing systems using Förster resonance energy transfer and also in photochemical release of biologicaly relevant molecules using coumarines has caging moyeties. Through a close colaboration with Dr. Pedro Baptista and the NanoTheragnostics group of UNL we have moved towards fluorescence sensors and photoreleasing systems assembled at the surface of metal nanoparticles.

Exciting new routes for the production of gold nanoparticles and hydrogels based on gold(I) complexes with small water soluble ligands have been found in collaboration with Dr. Laura Rodriguez from Univ. Barcelona.

I have also an interest in advanced oxidative systems in porous materials and through a very active collaboration with Dr. Conchi Ania from Instituto del Carbon we have been abble to show that carbonaceous materials, depending on their composition, can be used to oxidize phenol through visible light irradiation, a very exciting result.

5 selected publications:

(full publication list: RID, RG)

• Giestas, Letícia, Guilherme NM Ferreira, Pedro V. Baptista, and João Carlos Lima. "Multiplexed spectral coding for simultaneous detection of DNA hybridization reactions based on FRET." Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical 134, no. 1 (2008): 146-157.

• Pinheiro, André Vidal, Pedro Baptista, and João Carlos Lima. "Light activation of transcription: photocaging of nucleotides for control over RNA polymerization." Nucleic acids research 36, no. 14 (2008): e90-e90.

• Rosa, João, João Conde, Jesus M. de la Fuente, João C. Lima, and Pedro V. Baptista. "Gold-nanobeacons for real-time monitoring of RNA synthesis." Biosensors and Bioelectronics 36, no. 1 (2012): 161-167.

• Aguiló, Elisabet, Raquel Gavara, João Carlos Lima, Jordi Llorca, and Laura Rodríguez. "From Au (i) organometallic hydrogels to well-defined Au (0) nanoparticles." Journal of Materials Chemistry C 1, no. 35 (2013): 5538-5547.

• Velasco, Leticia F., Isabel M. Fonseca, José B. Parra, Joao C. Lima, and Conchi O. Ania. "Photochemical behaviour of activated carbons under UV irradiation." Carbon 50, no. 1 (2012): 249-258.