Biomedical Research Foundation Academy of Athens | Greece
Dr. Mary Tsikitis is an accomplished molecular geneticist whose research bridges molecular oncology and regenerative medicine. She earned her B.S. in Biochemistry with a minor in Mathematics from Tufts University and completed her M.S. and Ph.D. in Molecular Genetics at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, where she developed pioneering mouse models to study the tumor suppressor function of INI1/hSNF5, contributing to a PNAS 2005 publication. Her postdoctoral work at New York University’s Cancer Institute explored the molecular mechanisms of myogenesis, revealing key interactions between MyoD1, NFkB, E2f3b, and XBP1 pathways. At the Biomedical Research Foundation of the Academy of Athens, she advanced from Senior Research Associate to Independent Investigator, focusing on cardiac regeneration, the role of Desmin in cardiomyogenic differentiation, and the therapeutic potential of α-crystallin in cardiomyopathies. Dr. Tsikitis has supervised numerous graduate and postgraduate researchers and contributed to biotechnology education at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. Her scientific excellence has been recognized with several honors, including the ELIDEK Postdoctoral Fellowship, ONASSIO Joint Grant, and multiple presentation awards. Through her interdisciplinary work, she continues to advance molecular insights into cardiac and muscular diseases, driving innovation in therapeutic regeneration.
Featured Publications
Tsikitis, M., Diokmetzidou, A., Liakopoulos, P., Karipidou, M., Kokkinopoulos, I., Vatsellas, G., Kloukina, I., Kolovos, P., & Capetanaki, Y. (2025). “Molecular insights into the role of desmin intermediate filament network in chromatin landscape, cardiomyocyte differentiation, and maturation.” Cell Death & Disease.
Kerdidani, D., Chouvardas, P., Rocanin Arjo, A., Giopanou, I., Ntaliarda, G., Guo, Y. A., Tsikitis, M., Kazamias, G., Potaris, K., Stathopoulos, G. T., et al. (2019). “Wnt1 silences chemokine genes in dendritic cells and induces adaptive immune resistance in lung adenocarcinoma.” Nature Communications.
Capetanaki, Y., Papathanasiou, S., Diokmetzidou, A., Vatsellas, G., & Tsikitis, M. (2015). “Desmin related disease: a matter of cell survival failure.” Current Opinion in Cell Biology.