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Ioanna - Panagiota Kalafati

Assistant Professor

Expert

Dr Kalafati’s academic field focuses on understanding how genetic predisposition – both for physiological traits and for pathological phenotypes related to complex, multifactorial diseases – interacts with human dietary habits and lifestyle, influencing health outcomes. This also includes the collection, analysis, and interpretation of dietary and lifestyle data together with genetic data, with the overarching aim of developing evidence-based, individualized approaches in nutrition and health.

Education

  • Postdoctoral Research, Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Harokopio University, 2020-2024
  • Postdoctoral Research, Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, University of Thessaly, 2022-2024
  • Postdoctoral Research, Queen Mary University of London (UK), 2019-2020
  • PhD, Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Harokopio University, 2019
  • MSc in Clinical Nutrition & Public Health, Division of Medicine, University College London (UK), 2011
  • BSc, Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Harokopio University of Athens, 2010

Research Interests

  • Gene-diet interactions and chronic, complex diseases
  • Gene-lifestyle interactions and chronic, complex diseases
  • Personalized nutrition and lifestyle interventions
  • Genetic predisposition to chronic, complex diseases and human traits
  • Dietary patterns and their impact on health indicators
  • Large-scale data analysis
  • Development of polygenic risk scores

Publications

  • Kalafati IP, Tsifintaris M, Dimitriou M, Grigoriou E, Moulos P, Dedoussis GV. Development and validation of a polygenic risk score for height in a Greek cohort: Association with blood pressure measurements. Front Genet. 2025;16:1538975. Published 2025 May 1. doi:10.3389/fgene.2025.1538975
  • Smit RAJ, Wade KH, Hui Q, et al. Polygenic prediction of body mass index and obesity through the life course and across ancestries. Nat Med. 2025;31(9):3151-3168. doi:10.1038/s41591-025-03827-z
  • Kalafati IP, Alexandrou T, Mentsiou-Nikolaou E, Chourdakis M, Dedoussis GV. Assessing the Knowledge and Beliefs of Greek Dietitians and Nutritionists on Nutritional Genomics: A Survey-Based Study. Nutrients. 2025;17(7):1107. Published 2025 Mar 21. doi:10.3390/nu17071107
  • Kalafati IP, Dimitriou M, Revenas K, Kokkinos A, Deloukas P, Dedoussis GV. TM6SF2-rs58542926 Genetic Variant Modifies the Protective Effect of a "Prudent" Dietary Pattern on Serum Triglyceride Levels. Nutrients. 2023;15(5):1112. Published 2023 Feb 23. doi:10.3390/nu15051112
  • Kalafati IP, Dimitriou M, Borsa D, et al. Fish intake interacts with TM6SF2 gene variant to affect NAFLD risk: results of a case-control study. Eur J Nutr. 2019;58(4):1463-1473. doi:10.1007/s00394-018-1675-4