Raphael Fagundes Rosa

Raphael Fagundes Rosa is a Postdoctoral researcher at the University of Groningen, affiliated with the Faculty of Medical Sciences and the Department of Gastroenterology & Hepatology. His research focuses on the role of hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF-1α) and the KEAP1/NRF2 pathway in intestinal mucosal homeostasis, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), and oxidative stress responses. He holds a PhD from the University of Groningen (2022) and completed his master’s degree in Medical and Pharmaceutical Drug Innovation (cum laude, 2017) after a bachelor’s in Pharmaceutical Sciences (University of Brasília, 2015).

• Education: BSc Pharmaceutical Sciences (UnB, 2015), MSc Medical & Pharmaceutical Drug Innovation (Groningen, 2017), PhD (Groningen, 2022).
• Research: Microenvironmental factors in the intestine, mucosal hypoxia, microbiota interactions, and therapeutic targets for IBD.

His work combines experimental models (e.g., organoids, patient-derived biopsies) with advanced techniques like scRNAseq to study cell-type specific responses to inflammation and antioxidant therapies. Key contributions include elucidating HIF-1α’s role in IBD pathophysiology and exploring the NRF2/Keap1 pathway’s therapeutic potential.

Raphael has published over 20 peer-reviewed articles and contributed to reviews in high-impact journals like Trends in Microbiology and Trends in Pharmacological Sciences. His research bridges basic science and clinical applications, aiming to improve understanding of intestinal diseases.