Vasiliki Gkretsi

Vasiliki Gkretsi is an Associate Professor at the School of Sciences, European University Cyprus, Department of Life Sciences. She holds a Ph.D. in Cellular and Molecular Pathology from the University of Pittsburgh (2006) and a Diploma in Biology from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (2001). Her research focuses on cancer metastasis mechanisms, particularly the role of focal adhesion proteins like ILK, RSU-1, and GDF-15 in tumor progression. She has held academic roles including Assistant Professor (2017–2020) and Senior Scientist (2015–2017) at the University of Cyprus and University of Thessaly’s biomedical research institutes.

Her work integrates bioengineering approaches with molecular biology to study tumor microenvironment dynamics, cell adhesion signaling, and metastatic processes. Key contributions include identifying RSU-1 as a dual-function regulator in breast and glioma cancers and exploring GDF-15’s role in metastasis. She has led projects funded by the European Society for the Study of the Liver (EASL Sheila Sherlock Fellowship) and the Research Promotion Foundation.

• Education:
  • Ph.D., Cellular and Molecular Pathology, University of Pittsburgh (2006)
  • Diploma in Biology, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (2001)
• Awards:
  • EASL Sheila Sherlock Fellowship (2012–2014)
  • Stephen L. Phillips Scientific Achievement Award (2005)
• Roles:
  • Special Issue Editor, International Journal of Molecular Sciences and Life
  • Member of Bioethics Evaluation Committee for Biomedical Research

Her research spans over 45 peer-reviewed articles and has been cited over 1,600 times (Google Scholar). She holds a provisional U.S. patent for anti-inflammatory methods targeting the actin cytoskeleton.