Eri

Eleftheria Maria (Eri) PANAGIOTOU
PhD Student
Karolinska Institutet
e-mail: eleftheria.maria.panagiotou@ki.se
LinkedIn | ResearchGate

Who is Eri?

I am a Toxicologist with a background in Biochemistry & Biotechnology. I am currently pursuing a PhD in Pauliina Damdimopoulou’s lab at Karolinska Institutet, in my effort to learn more about the effects of endocrine disrupting chemicals on the human ovary. 

What is your focus/role in the FREIA project?

My role within FREIA is to further develop Adverse Outcome Pathways on female reproduction, as seen in Hanna Johansson’s review paper here. The focus right now is on Androgen Receptor antagonism leading to decreased fertility in females (AOP345).

What is an interesting result you have obtained so far? 

We have compiled strong evidence using existing literature knowledge, that androgen receptor antagonism leads to decreased granulosa cell proliferation, therefore affecting follicular health and fertility. More on this Key Event Relationship (KER) can be found on aop-wiki here

What would you like to accomplish within the FREIA project?

My goal within FREIA is to aid in the development of at least one complete adverse outcome pathway (AOP), if not several. My long-term goal is to contribute to a world with safer chemicals, providing ways to test their reproductive effects using alternatives to animal testing.

How is the COVID-19 pandemic affecting you/your work?

If COVID-19 conditions were the lemons, AOP345 was the lemonade that came out of this situation. It was the start of a fruitful collaboration with Dr. Terje Svingen, that introduced me to the world of Adverse Outcome Pathways. Being encouraged by the restrictions to work from home allowed me to allocate the majority of my time towards reading and writing, therefore developing the aforementioned KER. 

Is there anything else you would like to share with the people following FREIA?

If you are interested in AOP development, check our paper here. We propose that tackling one Key Event Relationship at a time, using systematic review approaches when judged appropriate, will ultimately result in a faster-paced AOP development.