Georgina Xanthou
Georgina Xanthou | |
|---|---|
| Occupation | Immunologist |
| Awards | Romain Pauwels Research Excellence Award, European Respiratory Society (2009) UNESCO Award for Women in Science (2009) |
| Academic background | |
| Education | BSc in Biomedical Sciences PhD in Immunology |
| Alma mater | National and Kapodistrian University of Athens Imperial College London |
| Academic work | |
| Institutions | Biomedical Research Foundation of the Academy of Athens |
Georgina Xanthou is an immunologist who serves as an associate professor at the Biomedical Research Foundation of the Academy of Athens.[1]
Xanthou's research focuses on autoimmune and allergic diseases, particularly in the understanding of immunological mechanisms through which cytokines shape immune responses and control T cell pathogenicity towards environmental allergens and self-antigens. She has received awards, including the Romain Pauwels Research Excellence Award by the European Respiratory Society,[2] the Allergopharma Award by the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology,[3] and the UNESCO L’Oreal Award for Women in Science.[4]
Education and career
[edit]Xanthou holds a BSc in Biomedical Sciences from the Department of Biology in the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, and a PhD in Immunology from the University of Athens, Medical School. She completed an European Molecular Biology Organization-funded postdoctoral fellowship in the Division of Biomedical Sciences at the Faculty of Medicine in Imperial College London.[5]
In 2003, Xanthou was appointed as an instructor in the Cellular Immunology Laboratory at Biomedical Research Foundation Academy of Athens (BRFAA). She became an assistant professor in 2007 and has been an Associate Professor and Group Leader at BRFAA since 2019.[6] In 2021, she served as a Visiting Professor/Senior Project Scientist at University of California, Los Angeles for two years.[7]
Research
[edit]Xanthou's research focuses on immunology and inflammation, specifically targeting the role of dendritic cells and T cells in autoimmune and allergic diseases,[8][9][10][11] as well as cancer. In one of her highly cited articles, she demonstrated that the cytokine, osteopontin has a dual role in allergic airway disease, being pro-inflammatory during initial allergen sensitization and anti-inflammatory during subsequent allergen challenges, and highlighted its potential as a therapeutic target for allergic diseases.[8] Her group has made contributions to studying the role of the cytokine activin-A in regulating immune responses in the context of allergy, autoimmunity, and cancer.[12][13] [14][15]
Xanthou has published over 50 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters.[16]
Awards and honors
[edit]- 2008 – Allergopharma Award, EAACI Executive Committee[3]
- 2009 – UNESCO L’Oreal Award for Women in Science, UNESCO[4]
- 2009 – Romain Pauwels Research Excellence Award, European Respiratory Society[2]
- 2012 – Fellow Award, European Federation of Immunologic Societies[1]
- 2014 – Fellowship, European Respiratory Society
Selected articles
[edit]- Humbles, A. A., Lloyd, C. M., McMillan, S. J., Friend, D. S., Xanthou, G., McKenna, E. E., ... & Gerard, C. (2004). A critical role for eosinophils in allergic airways remodeling. Science, 305(5691), 1776–1779.
- Xanthou, G., Alissafi, T., Semitekolou, M., Simoes, D. C., Economidou, E., Gaga, M., ... & Panoutsakopoulou, V. (2007). Osteopontin has a crucial role in allergic airway disease through regulation of dendritic cell subsets. Nature medicine, 13(5), 570–578.
- Semitekolou, M., Alissafi, T., Aggelakopoulou, M., Kourepini, E., Kariyawasam, H. H., Kay, A. B., ... & Xanthou, G. (2009). Activin-A induces regulatory T cells that suppress T helper cell immune responses and protect from allergic airway disease. The Journal of experimental medicine, 206(8), 1769.
- Petrakou, E., Fotopoulos, S., Anagnostakou, M., Anatolitou, F., Samitas, K., Semitekolou, M., ... & Xanthou, M. (2013). Activin-A exerts a crucial anti-inflammatory role in neonatal infections. Pediatric Research, 74(6), 675–681.
- Semitekolou, M., Morianos, I., Banos, A., Konstantopoulos, D., Adamou-Tzani, M., Sparwasser, T., & Xanthou, G. (2018). Dendritic cells conditioned by activin A–induced regulatory T cells exhibit enhanced tolerogenic properties and protect against experimental asthma. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 141(2), 671–684.
- Morianos, I., Trochoutsou, A. I., Papadopoulou, G., Semitekolou, M., Banos, A., Konstantopoulos, D., ... & Xanthou, G. (2020). Activin-A limits Th17 pathogenicity and autoimmune neuroinflammation via CD39 and CD73 ectonucleotidases and Hif1-α–dependent pathways. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117(22), 12269–12280.
- Theofani, E., Semitekolou, M., Samitas, K., Mais, A., Galani, I. E., Triantafyllia, V., ... & Xanthou, G. (2022). TFEB signaling attenuates NLRP3‐driven inflammatory responses in severe asthma. Allergy, 77(7), 2131–2146.
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Scientific Staff".
- ^ a b "Romain Pauwels Award (supported by GlaxoSmithKline)".
- ^ a b "Allergopharma Award, EAACI Executive Committee".
- ^ a b "Georgina Xanthou, PhD".
- ^ "Xanthou Georgina- Bio".
- ^ "Xanthou Lab".
- ^ "Former Lab Members".
- ^ a b "Osteopontin has a crucial role in allergic airway disease through regulation of dendritic cell subsets".
- ^ "Osteopontin Deficiency Protects against Airway Remodeling and Hyperresponsiveness in Chronic Asthma".
- ^ "Critical immunoregulatory role for activin-A in human allergic asthma".
- ^ "Targeting NLRP3 Inflammasome Activation in Severe Asthma".
- ^ "Activin-A induces regulatory T cells that suppress T helper cell immune responses and protect from allergic airway disease".
- ^ "Activin and transforming growth factor-beta signaling pathways are activated after allergen challenge in mild asthma".
- ^ "Activin-A co-opts IRF4 and AhR signaling to induce human regulatory T cells that restrain asthmatic responses".
- ^ "Activin-A in the regulation of immunity in health and disease".
- ^ "Georgina Xanthou - Google Scholar Profile".