NKUA

Department of Hygiene, Epidemiology and Medical Statistics, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

The Department of Hygiene, Epidemiology and Medical Statistics was founded in 1933. At present it forms part of the Sector of Social Medicine, Psychiatry, Neurology, of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens Medical School. The Department is active in education, research, and specific diagnosis. The Greek National Reference Centre for Retroviruses is one of the main diagnostic sectors of our Department. Furthermore, throughout the COVID-19 pandemic our lab carried out a substantial amount of molecular SARS-CoV-2 diagnostic tests. The main research interests of our lab include viral genomics and evolution, applications of evolutionary virology and viral-host interactions. We are interested in retrovirus research, both regarding exogenous retroviruses, with the emphasis put on HIV, and endogenous retroviruses, and HERV-host interactions, intra-viral interactions, including HIV-HERV and SARS-CoV-2-HERV interactions and their effect on the disease course.

Team

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Gkikas Magiorkinis

Gkikas Magiorkinis, MD MSc PhD Path(CCT) FRCPath, is Associate Professor of
Hygiene and Epidemiology in the Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian
University of Athens, and the Scientific Coordinator of the Greek National Reference
Centre for Retroviruses. He is the PI for the HERVCOV project for the participation of
the Department of Hygiene, Epidemiology and Medical Statistics. His research
interests include the applications of evolutionary virology in modern medicine, the
function and regulation of HERVs in health and disease, and the co-evolution of
HERVs and their host, HIV, Hepatitis Viruses, and SARS-CoV-2.

KITSOU_HERVCOV_PICTURE

Konstantina Kitsou

Konstantina Kitsou, MD MSc is currently in the final year of her PhD in
Immunobiology in the First Department of Pediatrics, and a Research Associate at
the Department of Hygiene, Epidemiology and Medical Statistics of the Medical
School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. Her research interests
include pathogen-host interactions and co-evolution, retroviruses, HERV-host/viral
interactions in human pathologies and in the shaping of immunity and inflammation.