Instructors

	Xanthou Georgina Researcher (Associate level) Instit.: BRFAA Tel: (+30) 210-6597336 e-mail: gxanthou [at] bioacademy.gr
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Short Bio:
Georgina Xanthou completed her studies at the Department of Biology of the University of Athens and received her PhD at the Department of Pathophysiology at the Medical School of the University of Athens. Her PhD studies focused on the role of the antigen presenting cells (dendritic cells) and salivary gland epithelial cells in the activation of autoreactive lymphocytes in the autoimmune disease Sjogren's syndrome. Her findings revealed that salivary gland epithelial cells express co-stimulatory molecules and participate in antigen presentation and activation of infiltrating autoreactive lymphocytes ex vivo. Dr. Xanthou's studies also demonstrated that dendritic cells infiltrating salivary glands are mature and involved, through the production of chemokines, in the recruitment of B and T lymphocytes and the formation of "tertiary lymphoid tissues" at the autoimmune site. Georgina Xanthou subsequently moved to the UK wherein she performed her postdoctoral studies at the Leukocyte Biology Section in Imperial College. Her studies focused on the functional crosstalk between chemokine receptors during T helper type 1 (Th1) and Th2-mediated immune responses. Her data revealed a novel mechanism through which Th1 cell-associated chemokines and their receptor, CXCR3, regulate Th2-mediated allergic responses. Dr. Xanthou's studies also contributed to the identification of a novel chemokine receptor, CXCR3B, expressed on activated human Th lymphocytes. In 2003, she joined the Biomedical Research Foundation of the Academy of Athens as Researcher D (Instructor level), at the Laboratory of Cellular Immunology. Later on, she was awarded a European Molecular Biology (EMBO) fellowship and joined Professor Clare Lloyd's team at Imperial College to study the in vivo role of the TGF-β superfamily members in allergic airway inflammation and remodeling. She now holds the position of Researcher C' at BRFAA and heads her own group focusing on the elucidation of the cellular and molecular mechanisms that regulate immune responses in the context of allergic diseases in vivo. Her recent line of research also involves investigating the role of the cytokine activin-A in the induction of functional human regulatory T cells in individuals with allergy and asthma. For her studies, Georgina Xanthou has received several international awards, such as the Allergopharma Award (2008), the UNESCO-L'Oreal Award for "Best Young Female Scientist in Greece" (2009) and the "Romain Pauwels Research Award" (2009) from the European Respiratory Society. In addition, she serves as an evaluator of grant proposals for the Greek General Secreteriat for Research and Technology and as a reviewer for international scientific journals. She is a member of the American Thoracic Society, the European Respiratory Society and the European Academy of Allergology and Clinical Immunology.

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