01↗
Plant reproduction & cell–cell communication
We investigate the molecular conversations that guide pollen tubes, pistil responses, fertilisation and seed formation.
↗
Sexual Plant Reproduction & Development Laboratory
How plants
make life.
We study the hidden conversations behind plant reproduction — and how to keep them working in a changing climate.
Explore our research ↓
Our focus
Reproduction is where a plant's future begins. We connect molecular mechanisms, cell biology and crop resilience to understand it — from pollen–pistil communication to heat-stressed fields.
From cells to crops
One question.
Many scales.
We move between molecules, cells, whole plants and crops to understand how reproduction succeeds — and why it sometimes fails.
What we investigate
Research
Fundamental questions.
Future-ready plants.
02↗
Reproduction under heat stress
We uncover how rising temperatures reshape reproductive success — from Arabidopsis mechanisms to resilient rice and cowpea.
03↗
Cell walls, AGPs & signalling
We explore arabinogalactan proteins and cell-wall dynamics as active players in development, signalling and reproduction.
04↗
Crop resilience & biotechnology
We translate fundamental discovery into tools for crop improvement, integrating transcriptomics, phenotyping and genome editing.
Selected projects
Science that
travels.
From Arabidopsis to rice and cowpea, our collaborations turn reproductive biology into strategies for agriculture under climate change.
Explore all projects ↗
The lab
People make
the science.
We are a collaborative team of plant biologists based at the University of Porto, connected to researchers and breeders across Europe and beyond.
Sílvia Coimbra
Principal Investigator
Luís Gustavo Pereira
Assistant Professor
Ana Marta Pereira
Assistant Researcher
Diana Moreira
Junior Researcher
Jessy Silva
Postdoctoral Researcher
Miguel Moreira
PhD Student
Rita Queirós
PhD Student
Ana Ventura
MSc Research Fellow
Júlia Trancho
MSc Student
Clara Konrad
Master's Student
Pedro Silva
Master's Student
Beatriz Albuquerque
MSc Student
Filipa Viso
BSc Student
Vicente Silva
BSc Student
Sara Gomes
BSc Student
Inside SPReD
Lab life
Microscopes, plants,
fields and people.
