António Salgado is a biologist with a PhD in Materials Science andTechnology- Tissue Engineering and Hybrid Materials (2005), and a Habilitation (DSc) in Health Sciences, from the University of Minho. Currently he is a Coordinating Investigator at the Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine – University of Minho. His research interests are focused on the development of innovative therapies for CNS repair, namely on Spinal Cord Injury and Parkinson’s Disease. His main areas of research are: 1) Development of ECM like hydrogels for the transplantation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells into the injured CNS; 2) Role of the secretome of MSCs in neuroprotection and repair, particularly the establishment of novel therapies based on the sole use of MSCs secretome. He is currently an author of more than 140 papers (over 6500 citations; h-Index=41, Clarivate Analytics Web of Science), and has delivery over 70 invited talks worldwide. He serves as the President of the Portuguese Society for Stem Cells and Cell Therapies, and as an Associate Editor for Biomed Research International, Biochimie, BMC Neuroscience and Stem Cells International. He has received several distinctions for his work including the Gulbenkian Award on Cutting Edge Research in Life Sciences, and the Prize Melo e Castro for Spinal Cord Injury Research, awarded by Santa Casa de Misericordia de Lisboa (2013, 2017 and 2021).