Maria E. Grigoriou
Vice Rector for Academic Affairs, Student Affairs & Lifelong Learning, Democritus University of Thrace
Maria E. Grigoriou is Professor of Developmental Biology in the Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics at Democritus University of Thrace and Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs, Student Welfare, Lifelong Learning, and International Relations. She holds a degree in Biology from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and a PhD in Molecular Biology from the Department of Biology of the University of Crete, completed in 1993. She subsequently pursued postdoctoral research at the School of Medicine of the University of Crete and the Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology of FORTH, followed by further postdoctoral work in the Division of Developmental Neurobiology at the National Institute for Medical Research in London, now part of the Francis Crick Institute.Her research focuses on the cellular and molecular mechanisms governing the development and function of the nervous system, as well as on microbiome and molecular biology applications in health and agrobiology. Over the course of her career, she has received several competitive fellowships and distinctions, including scholarships from FORTH, the Medical Research Council, and the European Union’s Marie Curie programmes. In 2013, she received an award for outstanding contribution from A. Dafovski Hospital in Kardzhali, Bulgaria, for the development of its Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory.Professor Grigoriou has held major academic leadership positions, serving as Chair of the Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics from 2014 to 2018 and as a member of the Senate of Democritus University of Thrace during the same period. Since 2019, she has served as Institutional Coordinator for Erasmus+ at the University. She has coordinated or participated in numerous nationally and European-funded research projects, including initiatives in molecular diagnostics, microbiome applications, synthetic biology, genomic engineering, agrobiology, and regional innovation. Her publication record includes research articles in international peer-reviewed journals in developmental neurobiology, molecular genetics, reproductive biology, and biomedical sciences.