A research project from NOVA Medical School won third place in the “PhD & Researchers” category of the European initiative H-INNOVA: Health Innovation HUB – Call for Projects, dedicated to promoting innovation in healthcare. Focusing on hormonal changes throughout a woman's life, the project reached the final stage of the competition, which received around 600 applications from various European countries.
Entitled “Tuning Metabolic Wellness Across Women's Life Transitions: Incretins and Sex Hormones as Therapeutic Beacons,” the project aims to assess how hormonal changes throughout a woman's life, particularly during adolescence and menopause, influence metabolism. The research focuses on the interaction between estrogens and incretins, such as GLP-1, with the aim of developing a predictive model of metabolic risk that allows for an earlier, personalized, and preventive approach to metabolic diseases.
The work involves a multidisciplinary team of researchers from NOVA Medical School in the fields of biomedicine, pediatric endocrinology, and biomedical engineering. For Rita Patarrão, coordinator of the study at the Metabolic Diseases Research Laboratory, led by professor and Vice-Dean for Research Paula Macedo, this distinction represents “a huge recognition of scientific and innovative merit, as well as the potential impact of the project.” According to the researcher, “it was an excellent result, as it validates the relevance of the research carried out, reinforces the international visibility of the work, and opens doors to new opportunities for collaboration, mentoring, and future knowledge transfer to clinical practice.”
The final stage of the call included a Pitch Ceremony, during which the finalists presented their projects to a specialized jury, and took place as part of the Digital Health Summit, an international event dedicated to innovation in health. The meeting was held at the University of Madeira, at the Jesuit College, on December 10 and 11, 2025.
This recognition reinforces NOVA Medical School's commitment to research excellence and the promotion of innovation in health, with a particular focus on developing solutions centered on women's health and improving the quality of life of the population.