17/07/2003

Five distinguished Greek researchers were awarded the Bodossaki Foundation Academic Prizes 2003. The Academic Prizes were awarded for the seventh time, on Wednesday 18 June 2003, at the University of Athens. The Greek President Konstantinos Stefanopoulos attended the ceremony and the Rector of the University of Athens Professor Georgios Bampiniotis awarded the prizes.

The Bodossaki Foundation Academic Prizes aim to support the creative work of young Greek scientists, up to 40 years old who, through their excellent scientific performance, contribute to the scientific advancement and the promotion of the Greek spirit in Greece and abroad.

Analytically, the Bodossaki Foundation Academic Prizes 2003, of 20.500 euro each, were awarded to the following scientists:

a) Theofanis N. Kitsopoulos
Associate Professor of Physical Chemistry, Chemistry Department, University of Crete

The research interests of T. Kitsopoulos focus on the study of Chemical Dynamics, that is the determination and the understanding of the effects of the laws of Physics on chemical reactivity. The experimental method that was developed in his laboratory is based on ion imaging, produced by selected multiphoton ionization of chemical reaction products. With a recent innovation in the method of ion imaging, called slice imaging, T. Kitsopoulos and his colleagues were able to measure, with quantum accuracy, the forces exerted among atoms and molecules during their reaction. Until today, there have only been two reactions studied at international level using quantum selectivity, and these were restricted to reactions between an atom and a two-atom molecule. This new method allows the study of an abundance of multi-atomic reactions (meaning beyond three atoms) with maximum detail. The experiments give the opportunity to decipher the dynamics of chemical procedures and lead to the better understanding of each mechanism, as well as to the absolute control of chemical reactions in the future.

http://www.iesl.forth.gr/lasergrp/tnk/Kitsopoulos.htm

b) Vasso K. Apostolopoulos
Associate Professor, Victoria University, Australia, Division of Biomedicine

V. Apostolopoulos has been internationally acknowledged for her achievements in developing a cancer vaccine, which has been on clinical trial since 1994. During this period, an Australian pharmaceutical company has been developing the vaccine for its ultimate production and distribution in the next three years. The new method, developed as a vaccine against certain cancers (breast, lung, colon, ovary, kidney and pancreas) has also been tested in cases of infectious diseases, HIV, tuberculosis, malaria, flu and recently, in the development of a vaccine against carbon and SARS. Since 1999 V. Apostolopoulos has teamed up with the Chemistry Department of the University of Patras (laboratory of Professor I. Matsoukas) in order to develop a vaccine against multiple sclerosis.

http://www.ari.unimelb.edu.au/labivl.htm

c) Georgios K. Mosialos
Researcher at the Institute of Immunology of the Biomedical Sciences Research Center "Alexandros Fleming", Division of Biomedicine

The scientific work of G. Mosialos focuses mainly on the analysis of molecular mechanisms of oncogenesis and is principally based on the study of the oncogen virus. His ground breaking research at Harvard University has revealed the mechanism of the most important oncogen protein of the Epstein-Barr virus, which is responsible for the development of many human neoplasia. A recent study of his research group in the Research Centre ?Alexandros Fleming? has also led to the determination of the mechanism responsible for the development of skin tumors called cylindromata. Moreover, other research projects have contributed to the discovery of the method for the identification of significant cells of the immune system, as well as to the development of a special category of retainers for the infection of lymphocytes from the HIV virus.

http://www.fleming.gr/Instimm.htm
http://www.hhmi.org/grants/awards/indiv/scholars/mosi.html

d) Konstantina Sp. Nikita
Associate Professor, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Division of Information Transmission Systems and Material Technology

The research activity of K. Nikita focus on the exploitation of the most recent developments of informatics for the resolution of biological and medical issues. Her extended research work covers the areas of simulation of biological and physiological systems, the support of clinical decisions with methods of computational intelligence, information systems and telematics applications in medicine, medical imaging, medical applications and safety of electromagnetic fields, as well as the development of new diagnostic and therapeutic methods.

http://www.ece.ntua.gr/personal.html?id=62

e) Pinelopi Koujianou-Goldberg
Professor of Economics, Yale University, US, Division of Social Sciences

P. Koujianou-Goldberg is specialized in the sectors of International Trade and Industrial Organisation and generally, in Applied Macroeconomics and Econometrics, areas on which she has published many scientific articles. Her research activity includes the study of the relation between international trade and income allocation, the analysis of trade liberalization effects, the study of the European Monetary Union impact on the prices of products in European countries, and the analysis of the impact of current trade policy on developing countries. Her research projects aim to determine and evaluate econometric models that may make a positive contribution to the decision-making process about current issues of economic policy.

http://www.econ.yale.edu/faculty1/goldberg.htm

Source: Bodossaki Foundation