UFMG professor is one of the ‘Women in Science’ award winners for her role in the pandemic – Horizonte

Virologist Marta Giovanetti, Interunits Graduate Program Professor in Bioinformatics at UFMG’s Institute of Biological Sciences (ICB) and researcher at Instituto Oswaldo Cruz (IOC/Fiocruz), is one of seven Brazilian scientists to win the 16th edition of the Pará Prize for Women in Science. The initiative aims to recognize the work of women scientists, and to promote gender equality in research.

The award is the result of a partnership between the Brazilian Academy of Sciences, UNESCO and L’Oréal Brasil. Each winning researcher received a grant of R$50,000 to implement research projects in the fields of life sciences, physical sciences, chemical sciences, and mathematics.

Giovanniti is Italian and worked as an academic in the European country, having come to Brazil to work in Vuecruz. It is involved in genetic surveillance activities and the development of protocols to detect and monitor emerging and re-emerging viruses, including the novel coronavirus.

According to UFMG data, the professor emerged in November last year as “the researcher with the most publications (26) on Covid-19 among researchers based in Brazil, as well as being the scientist with the most citations on the topic up to that point.” “. It underlines the importance of the award in the representation of women in science, where space is very small.

“This award is about not giving up, because we know how difficult it is to overcome the disappearance of women in science. The academic environment is very complex, as our professional lives depend on the recognition of our intellectual contributions. There are many daily challenges and I think giving a vision to science our career path is important for changing this scenario. ‘, he says.

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