Nektarios Tavernarakis

Nektarios Tavernarakis is a Professor of Molecular Systems Biology at the Medical School of the University of Crete and serves as Director General of the Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology (IMBB-FORTH) in Greece. He leads the Neurogenetics and Ageing laboratory, focusing on neuronal dysfunction, necrotic cell death, and aging mechanisms.

• Current affiliations: University of Crete, IMBB-FORTH
• Education: Ph.D. from University of Crete, postdoctoral training at Rutgers University

His research explores neurodegeneration, cell death pathways, aging, and genetic tool development. Recent work emphasizes stress response integration and metabolism-aging interplay.

Key scientific awards include:

• ERC Advanced Investigator Grant (2009)
• EMBO Young Investigator award (2002)
• Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel Research Award (2007)
• Bodossaki Foundation Academic Prize (2005)
• Academia Europaea membership

He has published over 131 peer-reviewed papers in top-tier journals, with significant contributions to understanding autophagy, neurodegenerative diseases, and cell death mechanisms.