Georgia Sfyroera, Ph.D.

Current Position

Senior Research investigator

Education

Ph.D, University of Patras, Greece, Immunology (2004)

M.Sc, University of Patras, Greece, Molecular Biology (2001)

B.Sc, University of Patras, Biology (1998)

Research

Dr. Sfyroera joined Dr. Lambris’s research group in 2001 while she was attending the University of Patras for the completion of her Ph.D. degree. She performed the experiments of her thesis in Dr. Lambris’s laboratory and successfully completed her Ph.D. in 2004. Her thesis centered on the complement evasion mechanisms of the variola and vaccinia viruses. In addition, she made significant contributions to multiple projects that focused on the development and function of various complement inhibitors. Since 2005, Dr. Sfyroera has worked as postdoctoral researcher in the laboratory, and she continues to decipher the mechanisms that pathogenic organisms use to manipulate and control the complement system. Her current research involves studying the interactions between Staphylococcus aureus and the central complement component C3. She is also working on the identification of mutations on the C3 molecule that influence its ability to form the active alternative pathway convertase.

Publications

Chen H, Schuster MC, Sfyroera G, Geisbrecht BV, Lambris JD. (2008). Solution insights into the structure of the Efb/C3 complement inhibitory complex as revealed by lysine acetylation and mass spectrometry. Journal of the American Society for Mass Spectrometry 19: 55-65.

Schuster MC, Ricklin D, Papp K, Molnar KS, Coales SJ, Hamuro Y, Sfyroera G, Chen H, Winters MS, Lambris JD. (2008). Dynamic structural changes during complement C3 activation analyzed by hydrogen/deuterium exchange mass spectrometry. Molecular Immunology 45: 3142-51 .

Hammel M, Sfyroera G, Ricklin D, Magotti P, Lambris JD, Geisbrecht BV,. (2007). A structural basis for complement inhibition by Staphylococcus aureus. Nature Immunology 8: 430-7 . Additional Links: Science Editor's Choice.

Hammel M, Sfyroera G, Pyrpassopoulos S, Ricklin D, Ramyar KX, Pop M, Jin Z, Lambris JD, Geisbrecht BV. (2007). Characterization of Ehp, a secreted complement inhibitory protein from Staphylococcus aureus. The Journal of Biological Chemistry 282: 30051-61 .

Nielsen EW, Waage C, Fure H, Brekke OL, Sfyroera G, Lambris JD, Mollnes TE. (2006). Effect of supraphysiologic levels of C1-inhibitor on the classical, lectin and alternative pathways of complement. Molecular Immunology 44: 1819-26 .

Zhang X, Kimura Y, Fang C, Zhou L, Sfyroera G, Lambris JD, Wetsel RA, Miwa T, Song WC. (2007). Regulation of Toll-like receptor-mediated inflammatory response by complement in vivo. Blood 110: 228-36 .

Katragadda M, Magotti P, Sfyroera G, Lambris JD. (2006). Hydrophobic effect and hydrogen bonds account for the improved activity of a complement inhibitor, compstatin. Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 49: 4616-22 .

Soulika AM, Holland MC, Sfyroera G, Sahu A, Lambris JD. (2006). Compstatin inhibits complement activation by binding to the beta-chain of complement factor 3. Molecular Immunology 43: 2023-9 .

Sfyroera G, Katragadda M, Morikis D, Isaacs SN, Lambris JD. (2005). Electrostatic modeling predicts the activities of orthopoxvirus complement control proteins. Journal of Immunology 174: 2143-51.

Bell E, Shamim M, Whitbeck JC, Sfyroera G, Lambris JD, Isaacs SN. (2004). Antibodies against the extracellular enveloped virus B5R protein are mainly responsible for the EEV neutralizing capacity of vaccinia immune globulin. Virology 325: 425-31 .

Park JW, Taube C, Joetham A, Takeda K, Kodama T, Dakhama A, McConville G, Allen CB, Sfyroera G, Shultz LD, Lambris JD, Giclas PC, Holers VM, Gelfand EW,. (2004). Complement activation is critical to airway hyperresponsiveness after acute ozone exposure. American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine 169: 726-32 .

Ricklin D, Tzekou A, Garcia BL, Hammel M, McWhorter WJ, Sfyroera G, Wu YQ, Holers VM, Herbert AP, Barlow PN, Geisbrecht BV, Lambris JD,. (2009). A molecular insight into complement evasion by the staphylococcal complement inhibitor protein family.. Journal of Immunology 183: 2565-74 .

Isaacs SN, Argyropoulos E, Sfyroera G, Mohammad S, Lambris JD. (2003). Restoration of complement-enhanced neutralization of vaccinia virus virions by novel monoclonal antibodies raised against the vaccinia virus complement control protein. Journal of Virology 77: 8256-62 .

Kazantzi A, Sfyroera G, Holland MC, Lambris JD, Zarkadis IK. (2003). Molecular cloning of the beta subunit of complement component eight of rainbow trout. Developmental and Comparative Immunology 27: 167-74 .

Drouin SM, Sinha M, Sfyroera G, Lambris JD, Wetsel RA. (2006). A protective role for the fifth complement component (c5) in allergic airway disease.. American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine 173: 852-7 .

*Silasi-Mansat R, Zhu H, Popescu NI, Peer G, Sfyroera G, Magotti P, Ivanciu L, Lupu C, Mollnes TE, Taylor FB, Kinasewitz G, Lambris JD, Lupu F.* (2010). Complement inhibition decreases the procoagulant response and confers organ protection in a baboon model of Escherichia coli sepsis. Blood 116: 1002-10 *Shared Supervision .

*Wu YQ, Qu H, Sfyroera G, Tzekou A, Kay BK, Nilsson B, Nilsson Ekdahl K, Ricklin D, Lambris JD.* (2011). Protection of nonself surfaces from complement attack by factor h-binding peptides: implications for therapeutic medicine. Journal of Immunology 186: 4269-77. * Shared Supervision . Additional Links: erratum.

Melillo D, Sfyroera G, De Santis R, Graziano R, Marino R, Lambris JD, Pinto MR. (2006). First identification of a chemotactic receptor in an invertebrate species: structural and functional characterization of Ciona intestinalis C3a receptor.. Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950) 177: 4132-40 .