Scientific Personnel

Brief Bio

Dr Politis received his BSc degree in Biology from the University of Patras, Greece in 1996. Then he moved to Oxford, where he was awarded his Ph.D. in Molecular Biology and Genetics from the Department of Biochemistry, Oxford University, UK in 2000. During this period, he worked on epigenetic aspects of eukaryotic transcriptional regulation. In particular, he investigated questions about the molecular mechanism via which chromatin structure, chromatin remodeling machinery and epigenetic modifications of the histone tails, such as acetylation and phosphorylation, influence transcriptional regulation. During his PhD thesis he was supported with studentships from prestigious organizations, namely Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, Florey-EPA studentship from Queen's College of Oxford University and Welcome Trust Fund. He has also been awarded the NASA planetary biology internship that gave him the opportunity to work in the Chemical Evolution Lab in the field of prebiotic Chemistry at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, CA, USA, where he studied the non-enzymatic synthesis of RNA, DNA and HNA (Hexitol Nucleic Acid) molecules from activated RNA or DNA monomers, trying to understand the transfer of information from hypothetical prebiotic molecules to RNA and DNA. He then obtained a post-doctoral position in the lab of Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology of the Hellenic Pasteur Institute, Athens, Greece. His research in Athens focused on the regulation of neuronal differentiation and specification, studying the role of genes that coordinate cell cycle exit and differentiation of neural stem cells during embryonic development. He joined BRF in January 2007 as Researcher D (Lecturer) at the Section of Histology in the Center for Basic Research. His research interests are focused on how epigenetic mechanisms can regulate cell differentiation and proliferation during development, in health and disease.

Selected Publications

Stergiopoulos A and Politis PK. (2016). Nuclear receptor NR5A2 controls neural stem cell fate decisions during development. Nature Communications. 7:12230.

Arvaniti E, Vakrakou A, Kaltezioti V, Stergiopoulos A, Prakoura N, Politis PK*, Charonis A* (2016). Nuclear receptor NR5A2 is involved in the calreticulin gene regulation during renal fibrosis. Biochim Biophys Acta. 1862:1774-1785.
        *Corresponding authors.

Arvaniti E, Moulos P, Vakrakou A, Chatziantoniou C, Chadjichristos C, Kavvadas P, Charonis A, Politis PK. (2016). Whole-transcriptome analysis of UUO mouse model of renal fibrosis reveals new molecular players in kidney diseases. Scientific Reports. 6:26235.

Dermentzaki G, Paschalidis N, Politis PK, Stefanis L. (2016). Complex Effects of the ZSCAN21 Transcription Factor on Transcriptional Regulation of α-Synuclein in Primary Neuronal Cultures and in Vivo. Journal of  Biological Chemistry. 291:8756-8772.

Kaltezioti K, Antoniou D, Stergiopoulos A, Rozani I, Rohrer H and Politis PK. (2014). Prox1 regulates Olig2 expression to modulate binary fate decisions in spinal cord neurons. The Journal of Neuroscience. 34:15816-15831. 

Stergiopoulos A, Elkouris M and Politis PK. (2014). Prospero-related homeobox 1 (Prox1) at the crossroads of diverse pathways during adult neural fate specification. Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience. 8:454.

Antoniou D, Stergiopoulos A and Politis PK. (2014). Recent advances in the involvement of long non-coding RNAs in neural stem cell biology and brain pathophysiology. Frontiers in Physiology. 5:155.

Foskolou IP, Stellas D, Rozani I, Lavigne MD and Politis PK .(2013). Prox1 suppresses the proliferation of neuroblastoma cells via a dual action in p27-Kip1 and Cdc25A. Oncogene, 32(8):947-960. 

Stergiopoulos A and Politis PK. (2013). The role of nuclear receptors in controlling the fine balance between proliferation and differentiation of neural stem cells. Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics. 534(1-2):27-37.

Koutmani Y, Politis PK, Elkouris M, Agrogiannis G, Kemerli M, Patsouris E, Remboutsika E, Karalis KP. (2013). Corticotropin-releasing hormone exerts direct effects on neuronal progenitor cells: implications for neuroprotection. Molecular Psychiatry. 18(3):300-307.

Kaltezioti V, Kouroupi G, Oikonomaki M, Mantouvalou E, Stergiopoulos A, Charonis A, Rohrer H, Matsas R and Politis PK. (2010). Prox1 regulates the Notch1-mediated inhibition of neurogenesis. PLoS Biology. 8(12):e1000565.

Politis PK, Makri G, Thomaidou D, Geissen M, Rohrer H, Matsas R. (2007). BM88/Cend1 regulates cell cycle exit and differentiation of neuronal precursors. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A, 104, 17861–17866.

Full list of Politis' Publications

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