Aikaterini C. Tsika

B.Sc. & M.Sc. in Pharmacy, Ph.D. Candidate

Expertise in Protein Expression, Labeling and Purification, Physicochemical characterization, NMR data analysis

Publications: 7 in peer-reviewed journals

Participation in Funded Projects: INSPIRED-Competitiveness and Entrepreneurship & Innovation EPAnEK, 2014-2020 (co-financed by Greece and European Union)

Scholarships: Hellenic Foundation for Research and Innovation (HFRI) and the Greek General Secretariat for Research and Technology (GSRT) for a PhD Fellowship grant (A.C.T.; GA.no. 2430)

Current Funding: RI “INSPIRED” (Competitiveness and Entrepreneurship & Innovation EPAnEK, 2014-2020, co-financed by Greece and European Union)

Email: katerinatsikach@gmail.com, ktsika@upatras.gr

Aikaterini C. Tsika is a PhD Candidate holding BSc. and MSc. degrees from Department of Pharmacy at the University of Patras. She joined the lab of Biomolecular NMR (Dr. G.A. Spyroulias) in 2011 as an undergraduate student. She gained significant experience during her Diploma and Master Thesis working on the conformational analysis of viral and human macro domains which play a significant role in viral replication and ADP-ribosylation. Her research activity includes fields of biotechnology, protein chemistry (protein expression, labeling, purification and physicochemical characterization) and structural biology. In addition, she is working in project on in vitro evaluation of PROTACs compounds in eukaryotic cell lines. She performs NMR data analysis to study the conformational and interaction properties of macro domains with a number of physiological ligands, like nucleotides and RNAs and is involved at COVID-19-NMR consortium (https://covid19-nmr.de/). Up to now her research results are reported in 12 publications.

Most Important Publications:

  1. “1H, 13C, and 15N backbone chemical shift assignments of the apo and the ADP-ribose bound forms of the macrodomain of SARS-CoV-2 non-structural protein 3b.”, F. Cantini, L. Banci, N. Altincekic, J. K. Bains, K. Dhamotharan, C. Fuks, S. L. Gande, B. Hargittay, M. T. Hutchison, S. M. Korn, ….., A. C. Tsika, N. K. Fourkiotis, G. A. Spyroulias, Biomolecular NMR assignment, (2020)
  2. “Deciphering the Nucleotide and RNA Binding Selectivity of the Mayaro Virus Macro Domain.”, C. Tsika, E. Melekis, S. A. Tsatsouli, N. Papageorgiou, M. J.Maté, B. Canard, B. Coutard, D. Bentrop, G. A. Spyroulias, Journal of molecular biology, (2019) 431(12), 2283–2297.
  3. “Lead Identification Through the Synergistic Action of Biomolecular NMR and In Silico Methodologies.”, K. D. Marousis, A. C. Tsika, M. Birkou, M. T. Matsoukas, G. A. Spyroulias, Methods in Molecular Biology, (2018) 1824: 299-316.
  4. “Evidence for Novel Action at the Cell-Binding Site of Human Angiogenin Revealed by Heteronuclear NMR Spectroscopy, in silico and in vivo Studies.”, D. Chatzileontiadou, A. C. Tsika, Z. Diamantopoulou, J. Delbé, J. Badet, J. Courty, V. T. Skamnaki, V. Parmenopoulou, D. Komiotis, J. M. Hayes, G. A. Spyroulias, D. D. Leonidas, ChemMedChem, (2018) 13(3), 259–269.
  5. “NMR study of non-structural proteins-part III: 1H, 13C, 15N backbone and side-chain resonance assignment of macro domain from Chikungunya virus (CHIKV).” M. V. Lykouras, A. C. Tsika, J. Lichière, N, Papageorgiou, B. Coutard, D. Bentrop, G. A. Spyroulias, (2018) Biomolecular NMR assignments 12(1), 31–35.

Current funding: INSPIRED – The National Research Infrastructures on Integrated Structural Biology, Drug Screening Efforts and Drug target functional characterization”(MIS 5002550), which is implemented under the Action “Reinforcement of the Research and Innovation Infrastructure”, funded by the Operational Programme “Competitiveness Entrepreneurship and Innovation” (NSRF 2014-2020) and co-financed by Greece and the European Union (European Regional Development Fund)

Email: katerinatsikach@gmail.com , ktsika@upatras.gr