Nikos Tapinos, MD, PhD

Dr. Nikos Tapinos received his MD/PhD degrees from the National University of Athens, Greece. His PhD dissertation was conducted in the Department of Pathophysiology with a focus on Molecular Immunology. This work culminated in cloning a strain of Coxsackie virus as the underlying trigger of an autoimmune syndrome in humans and earned several awards in international meetings.

A postdoctoral training at The Rockefeller University (New York, NY) introduced Dr. Tapinos to the field of Molecular Neuroscience where he studied how pathogenic Leprosy Bacteria invade and regulate the glial cells of the peripheral nervous system to produce peripheral neuropathy. This work revealed for the first time a mechanism for non-immune mediated demyelination and uncovered new signaling pathways that regulate glial cell functions. Following his postdoctoral training at Rockefeller, Dr. Tapinos joined the Faculty at Geisinger Clinic where he established the Molecular Neuroscience and Neuro-Oncology Laboratory and held the position of Director of Neurosurgery Research.

An opportunity to join the Faculty of the Department of Neurosurgery at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University prompted a departure from Geisinger Clinic in 2016. Currently, he is an Associate Professor at the Department of Neurosurgery and the Department of Neuroscience and the Director of the Molecular Neuroscience & Neuro-Oncology Research at Rhode Island Hospital.

Degrees
2000
Ph.D., University of Athens, Molecular Biology

1996
M.D., University of Athens, School of Medicine,

Fellowships
Postdoctoral Fellowship, The Rockefeller University (New York, NY)

Titles
Sidney A. Fox and Dorothea Doctors Fox Associate Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Science

Associate Professor of Neurosurgery
The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University

Director
Molecular Neuroscience & Neuro-Oncology Laboratory