Apresentação Pessoal

Helder Cardoso-Cruz é investigador auxiliar do i3S/Pain Neurobiology Lab. e do Departamento de Biomedicina - Unidade de Biologia Experimental da Faculdade de Medicina do Porto. O seu interesse de pesquisa cientifica é a relação entre a dor e as funções cognitivas, em particular a dinâmica entre o cortéx pré-frontal e o hipocampo durante o processamento de memória de trabalho. A sua linha de investigação envolve uma abordagem interdisciplinar, combinando técnicas de electrofisiologia in vivo, avaliação comportamental, neuromodulação cerebral por optogenética, desenvolvimento de ferramentas analíticas para o estudo da dinâmica de microcircuitos e o desenho e implementação de algoritmos para a descodificação da actividade neuronal.

Publicações selecionadas:

Cerqueira-Nunes M, Monteiro C, Galhardo V, Cardoso-Cruz H* (2025) Inflammatory pain modifies reward preferences from larger delayed to smaller immediate rewards in male rats. Neuroscience Letters, doi:10.1016/j.neulet.2025.138183

Dourado M, Cardoso-Cruz H*, Monteiro C, Galhardo V* (2025) Neuromodulation of dopamine D2 receptors alters orbitofrontal neuronal activity and reduces risk-prone behavior in male rats with inflammatory pain. Molecular Neurobiology, Feb 22. doi: 10.1007/s12035-025-04781-0. Online ahead of print.

Cardoso-Cruz H*,  Monteiro C, Galhardo (2024) Reorganization of lateral habenula neuronal connectivity underlies pain-related impairment in spatial memory encoding. PAIN, doi: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000003493. December 11, 2024. 

Cerqueira-Nunes M, Monteiro C, Galhardo V, Cardoso-Cruz H* (2024) Orbitostriatal encoding of reward delayed gratification and impulsivity in chronic pain. Brain Research, 1839:149044. (Review)

Cerqueira-Nunes M, Monteiro C, Galhardo V, Cardoso-Cruz H* (2024) Deciphering the Role of the Nucleus Accumbens Shell Area on Spatial Memory Deficits Induced by Neuropathic Pain in Rats. Applied Biosciences, 3(2):283-295.

Pereira AR, Alemi M, Cerqueira-Nunes M, Monteiro C, Galhardo V, Cardoso-Cruz H* (2023) Dynamics of lateral habenula - ventral tegmental area microcircuit on pain-related cognitive dysfunctions. Neurology International 15(4):1303-1319. (Review)

Rodrigues D, Monteiro C, Cardoso-Cruz H, Galhardo V* (2023) Altered brain expression of DNA methylation and hydroxymethylation epigenetic enzymes in a rat model of neuropathic pain. International Journal of Molecular Sciences 24(8):7305.

Alemi M, Pereira AR, Cerqueira-Nunes M, Monteiro C, Galhardo V*, Cardoso-Cruz H* (2023) Role of Glutamatergic Projections from Lateral Habenula to Ventral Tegmental Area in Inflammatory Pain-Related Spatial Working Memory Deficits. Biomedicines 11(3):820.

Cardoso-Cruz H*, Laranjeira I, Monteiro C, Galhardo V (2022) Altered prefrontal-striatal theta-band oscillatory dynamics underlie working memory deficits in neuropathic pain rats. European Journal of Pain 26:1546-1568.

Cardoso-Cruz H*, Paiva P, Monteiro C, Galhardo V (2019) Selective optogenetic inhibition of medial prefrontal glutamatergic neurons reverses working memory deficits induced by neuropathic pain. PAIN 160:805-823.

Cardoso-Cruz H*, Paiva P, Monteiro C, Galhardo V (2019) Bidirectional optogenetic modulation of prefrontal-hippocampal connectivity in pain-related working memory deficits. Scientific Reports 9:10980.

Monteiro C, Cardoso-Cruz H, Galhardo V.* (2019) Animal models of congenital hypoalgesia: Untapped potential for assessing pain-related plasticity. Neuroscience Letters 702:51-60. (Review)

Cardoso-Cruz H*, Dourado M, Monteiro C, Galhardo V (2018) Blockade of dopamine D2 receptors disrupts intrahippocampal connectivity and enhances pain-related working memory deficits in neuropathic pain rats. European Journal of Pain 22:1002-1015.

Monteiro C, Cardoso-Cruz H, Matos M, Dourado M, Lima D, Galhardo V* (2016) Increased fronto-hippocampal connectivity in the Prrxl1 knockout mouse model of congenital hypoalgesia. PAIN 157:2045-2056.

Dourado M, Cardoso-Cruz H, Monteiro C, Galhardo V* (2016) Effect of Motor Impairment on Analgesic Efficacy of Dopamine D2/3 Receptors in a Rat Model of Neuropathy. Journal of Experimental Neuroscience 10:51-7.

Cardoso-Cruz H, Dourado M, Monteiro C, Matos MR, Galhardo V* (2014) Activation of dopaminergic D2/D3 receptors modulates dorsoventral connectivity in the hippocampus and reverses the impairment of working memory after nerve injury. The Journal of Neuroscience 34:5861-5873.

Cardoso-Cruz H, Sousa M, Vieira JB, Lima D, Galhardo V* (2013) Prefrontal cortex and mediodorsal thalamus reduced connectivity is associated with spatial working memory impairment in rats with inflammatory pain. PAIN 154:2397-2406.

Cardoso-Cruz H, Lima D, Galhardo V* (2013) Impaired spatial memory performance in a rat model of neuropathic pain is associated with reduced hippocampus-prefrontal cortex connectivity. The Journal of Neuroscience 33:2465-2480.

Cardoso-Cruz H, Lima D, Galhardo V* (2011) Instability of spatial encoding by CA1 hippocampal place cells after peripheral nerve injury. European Journal of Neuroscience 33:2255-2264.

Cardoso-Cruz H, Sameshima K, Lima D, Galhardo V* (2011) Dynamics of Circadian Thalamocortical Flow of Information during a Peripheral Neuropathic Pain Condition. Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience 5:43.

Silva A, Cardoso-Cruz H, Silva F, Galhardo V, Antunes L* (2010) Comparison of anesthetic depth indexes based on thalamocortical local field potentials in rats. Anesthesiology 112:355-363.

Marques AP, Cruz HR, Coutinho OP, Reis RL* (2005) Effect of starch-based biomaterials on the in vitro proliferation and viability of osteoblast-like cells. Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Medicine 16(9):833-42.

 
Projetos de investigação selecionados:

2023 - presente; FCT: 10.54499/2022.00128.CEECIND/CP1735/CT0019;  "Shed light on comorbid pain-related Lateral Habenula network dysfunctions during cognitive motifs"; (Contrato de trabalho - Investigador Auxiliar, 375 k¤)

2023- presente; PAIN ADDICT - Dopaminergic circuits underlying habit formation and addiction in animal models of chronic pain"; (Project Grant, 249 k¤; Membro da Equipa).

2019-2023; FCT: 10.54499/DL/2016/CP1355/CT0015; "Optogenetic dissection of the prefrontal cortex networks to reverse pain-related cognitive dysfunctions"; (Contrato de trabalho - Investigador Junior, 177 k¤).

2018-2022; FCT: PTDC/MED-NEU/28181/2017; "MEMORYSTIM - Optogenetic modulation of prefrontal GABAergic and dopaminergic signaling to reverse pain-related cognitive deficits"; (Project Grant, 229 k¤; Investigador Principal).

2018-2021; FCT: PTDC/MED-NEU/28498/2017; "OPTORISK - Reward signals codification in neural populations of dopaminergic circuitry: optogenetic study of the neural correlates of decision and expectance"; (Project Grant, 238 k¤; Membro da Equipa).

 
Guest Editor
Diagnostics - Special Issue: "Progress in Chronic Pain: Bridging Basic and Clinical Research"
Deadline: 31 December 2025
https://www.mdpi.com/journal/diagnostics/special_issues/IOO261P537

Áreas de Interesse

1. Ciências da Saúde > Neurociências