Message from the President
Why our mission matters:
We promote interactions to inspire collaborations between biomedical scientists in the USA and Greece.
Board of Directors 2025-2027
President
Alexandra Touroutoglou, MSc, PhD
Alexandra Touroutoglou, MSc, PhD is an Assistant Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School and the Director of Imaging Operations in the Frontotemporal Disorders Unit at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). At MGH, she is leading clinical research on brain aging and clinical trials to test new treatments for patients with Alzheimer’s disease. She has an international reputation and won numerous awards for her work. As the President of HBA-USA, board she is committed to enabling and facilitating interactions among Greek biomedical scientists between Greece and the USA.
Vice President
Christos Lisgaras, PhD
Christos Lisgaras completed his undergraduate studies in Applied Biology and Technology at the University of Ioannina in Greece and earned his Ph.D. in Neurophysiology from the same institution. His Ph.D. work focused on the role of the cholinergic neurotransmission and high-frequency neuronal oscillations in hyperexcitability of developmental epilepsies. He was subsequently trained at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York and he is currently a Research Fellow at the New York University and the Nathan S. Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research in New York City. His research focuses on Epilepsy and Alzheimer’s disease. Christos returns to the 2020-2022 HBA-USA Board of Directors for a second term.
General Secretary
Alexandros Kokkosis, PhD
Alexandros Kokkosis was born in Greece and earned his B.Sc. in Biology and M.Sc. in Biological Technology from the University of Patras in 2012 and 2015, respectively. His thesis work primarily explored neurotoxicity models, cholinergic system abnormalities, oxidative stress reactions, and behavioral changes. He then pursued a Ph.D. in Molecular & Cellular Pharmacology at Stony Brook University in New York, where his research focused on microglial-mediated neuroinflammatory responses during chronic psychosocial stress and their effects on neuronal and oligodendroglial homeostasis in depression. In September 2021, Alexandros joined the Regeneron Postdoctoral Program, where he investigates the regulatory mechanisms of synaptic function and memory formation in aging, as well as the therapeutic potential of manipulating these mechanisms to prevent or mitigate age-related memory decline.
Appointed Secretary
Evmorfia Konstantakou, PhD
Evmorfia (Eumorphia) Konstantakou, PhD is a Principal Scientist II at Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research at the department of Preclinical Safety and Translational Medicine in Cambridge, Massachusetts since December 2023. She received her Bachelor degree and PhD from National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and she continued her post-doctoral training at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School on 2016. On 2021 she became an Instructor in Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital. Her background is in Cancer Biology, and recently in Toxicology. She is always trying to connect with young scientists in Greece and help them to expand their experience in USA, and now, through a well established organization, as HBA USA, she will have the opportunity to further support these actions and help any kind of collaborations between Greek scientists in Greece and USA.
Treasurer
Andreas Kateifidis, MD, PhD
Andreas obtained his medical and doctoral degrees from the University of Crete in Greece and completed an MBA in Health Sector Management at Boston University, USA. During his doctoral studies, he worked at Whitaker Cardiovascular Institute at Boston University where he investigated the in vivo and in vitro functions of mutant forms of apolipoprotein A-I to determine how structural changes affect plasma cholesterol and triglyceride levels and their contribution to atherogenesis. He additionally developed a method for purification of human apolipoproteins. He is currently a Manager in Process Management and Business Analytics at Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. Andreas was introduced to HBA-USA in 2011 and since 2017 he has been serving as Councillor.
Councilor and President of HBA-USA South Chapter
Stefan Sarafianos, PhD
Stefan Sarafianos (BS, Patras Univ; PhD, Georgetown Univ; sarafianoslab.com) is a Professor and Distinguished Chair at Emory Univ School of Medicine. He co-leads the Center for ViroScience and Cure, the B-HIVE Center for AIDS Structural Biology, and the Next Generation Therapeutics SWG at the Atlanta Center for AIDS Research-CFAR. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology, Scientific Advisory Board member in Pharma, Academia, and Research Center. His work focuses on elucidating how viruses function towards developing drugs to treat human disease. His research has been supported by >$75M and has published 215 papers (h-index 64). As a founding member of HBA-USA South (since 2023) he is committed to strengthening HBA-USA by increasing recruitment, scientific and social activities, as well as establishing mechanisms for increased training opportunities of Greek scientists in US Institutions.
Councilor
Ioannis Sanidas, PhD
Ioannis Sanidas, PhD is an Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School (HMS) and Principal Investigator at the Center for Cancer Research at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH CCR). He graduated from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in 2008 and completed postdoctoral training at Tufts Medical Center and MGH CCR. For the past decade, his research has focused on the retinoblastoma (RB) tumor suppressor, a molecule inactivated in most human tumors. Collaborating with clinician-scientists, his team develops patient-derived models to investigate targeted therapies, optimize drug combinations, and identify responsive patient subgroups. His work has been published in leading scientific journals and funded by NIH. As a board member of the HBA-USA, he is committed to strengthening networks among Greek scientists, expanding mentoring programs, fostering research collaborations with Greek universities, and enhancing engagement with student associations in Greece.
Previous Board of Directors
President: Alexandra Touroutoglou, Phd
Vice President: Christos Lisgaras, PhD
Treasurer: Andreas Kateifidis, MD PhD
General Secretary 2020:Krinio Giannikou, PhD
Appointed Secretary: Maria Stamou, MD, PhD
Councilor: Charilaos Fillipakis, PhD
Councilor: Konstantinos Linos, MD, FCAP, FASDP
Substitute members: Alex Mitsialis, PhD & Filippos Kottakis, PhD
President: Anna Gavrieli, PhD
Vice President: Panagiotis Fotakis, PhD
Treasurer: Andreas Kateifidis, MD PhD
General Secretary 2020: Alexandra Touroutoglou, PhD
Councilor: Drosoula Giantsoudi, PhD, DABR
Councilor & Social Media Coordinator & Public Outreach: Christos Lisgaras, PhD
Ex Officio Member: Sotirios K. Sotiriou, PhD
General Secretary 2019: Eva Tsaousidou, PhD
President: Elisavet Serti (2017-2018) – Georgios Pyrgiotakis (2016-2017)
Vice President: Elisavet Serti (2016-2017) – Georgios Pyrgiotakis (2017-2018)
Treasurer: Anna Gavrieli
General Secretary: Panagiotis Fotakis
App. Secretary: Anastasia Nikolopoulou
Councilors: Andreas Kateifidis, Maria Mavrikaki
President: Kostas Arvanitis
Vice President: Kostas Biliouris
Treasurer: Ioannis Zervantonakis
General Secretary: Elisavet Serti
App. Secretary: Nikolaos Dimitrakakis
Councilors: Eirini Papapetrou, Sotiris Stergiopoulos
President: Ioannis Zervantonakis
Vice President: Anastasia Nikolopoulou
Past Vice-President: Athanassios Vassilopoulos, Runner up: George Noutsios
Treasurer: Eleftherios Makris
General Secretary: Konstantinos Biliouris
App. Secretary: Panteleimon Mavroudis
Councilors: Pavlos Msaouel, Nikolaos Tsirikos-Karapanos
President: T. Thomou
Vice President: S. Sotiriou, A. Vassilopoulos
App. Secretary: E. Filippidi
Treasurer: K. Loupasakis
Councilors: D. Gousetis, A. Nikolopoulou, I. Zervantonakis
President: K. Drosatos
Vice President: T. Thomou
Treasurer: D. Iliopoulos
Gen. Secretary: M. Vassiadi
App. Secretary: E. Ntrivalas
Councilors: D. Gousetis, I. Karagiannidis
President: K. Drosatos
Vice President: D. Iliopoulos
Gen. Secretary: T. Thomou
Treasurer: I. Karagiannides
App. Secretary: E. Ntrivalas
Councilors: K. Bakirtzi, E. Filippidi