AGRICULTURAL
UNIVERSITY OF ATHENS
Department of Food 
Science & Human Nutrition

Dimitris Matiadis is an Assistant Professor of Organic Chemistry at the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition of the Agricultural University of Athens since November 2024. He graduated from the Department of Chemistry at the University of Ioannina in 2005 and completed his Ph.D. at the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA) in 2013. From 2013 to 2017, as a postdoctoral researcher at the NTUA Laboratory of Organic Chemistry, he focused on the synthesis and study of antimicrobial compounds and cyclic peptides. In 2018, he moved to the Institute of Biosciences & Applications at the National Center for Scientific Research "Demokritos," where he worked until the end of 2021 on the synthesis of bioactive organic molecules based on curcumin analogs. Since 2019, he has also undertaken teaching and research duties at the Department of Biomedical Sciences at the University of West Attica.

He has received two research fellowships (IKY-SIEMENS 2015–2017 and IKY Postdoctoral Researchers Enhancement 2019–2021). As a member of research teams, he has worked on two projects, "Thales" and "KREPIS."

He is a member of the Royal Society of Chemistry, the Association of Greek Chemists, and the European Peptide Society.

Since 2019, he has been an evaluator of scientific proposals for the Science Fund of the Republic of Serbia and, since 2023, a member of the RSC Researcher Grants Peer Review Group.

He serves as a reviewer for international scientific journals published by Wiley, Springer Nature, RSC, Cell Press, Taylor & Francis, MDPI, and others.

He has 34 publications in international scientific journals (2020–2024: 21 articles), an h-index of 12, and 422 citations of his work (342 excluding self-citations of all authors).

Current Research:

Administration Office of Postgraduate Studies

Professor Ioanna Mandala is professor in Food Engineering- Physical Properties of Foods, Head of Food Process Engineering Lab and Head of the Department of Food Science & Human Nutrition. She is a Chemical Engineer being graduated from National Technical University of Athens and she holds a Ph.D. performed in Food Engineering Lab at Agricultural University of Athens, focused on trheological properties and microstructure of starch/hydrocolloids systems. She has collaborated with several research groups abroad, in Germany (Karlsruhe), France (ENSIA-Paris), and New Jersey, USA (Rutgers University). Her research has achieved nearly 3600 citations (6/2024). Τhe average impact per publication corresponds to h-index: 6.2 and to a total h-factor:37 (Scopus search I* Mandala or J* Mandala). She participated in several national or international research projects as member of the research team, scientific supervisor, or project coordinator.
Her research is focused on the measurement of physical properties in terms of food composition and processing. Regarding physical properties the main attributes of her interst are the texture, the rheological properties, the color, the granulometry, the macto/micro structure and the sensory attributes under processing. In recent years, the dehydration of plant origin products and the size reduction processes are core activities.
Since 2023 she has been member of the scientific committee of the Journal of Food Science (JFS) and since 2024 is an Associate Editor (AE) in the same journal.

Prof. E . H . Drosinos graduated from the Agricultural University of Athens and received his Ph.D. degree from Bath University (UK). He is Professor and teaches Food Safety and  Quality Management Systems. His research activities focus on the assurance and control of the microbiological quality and hygiene of edible material. He is also working on the design and implementation of HACCP systems as well as quality management of the ISO 9000 series, focusing on matters such as the growth and development of pathogenic and spoilage microorganisms in foodstuff and agricultural products.

Dr. V. Evageliou studied Chemistry at the University of Athens and then obtained her Ph.D. degree from Cranfield University, UK. From 2002-2006 she taught at the University of Thessaly (Veterinary Department) and the Technological Institute of Lamia (Departments of Nursing and Physical Therapy). Since 2006, she is a member of the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition initially as a Lecturer (2006-2012), an Assistant Professor (2012-2018) and currently as Associate Professor (2018-...)  in the field of Food Physical Chemistry.

Her scientific interests include the following: Physicochemical and functional properties of food; Study of biopolymer (hydrocolloids) solutions and gels using rheology, D.S.C. etc.; Development of new functional products e.g. with reduced sucrose; Retention/ encapsulation of aroma compounds by biopolymer systems; Biopolymer food applications (e.g. drying of aromatic plants, antioxidant activity of food etc.); Gels; Emulsions; Edible films and coatings; Encapsulation

Georgia Zoumpopoulou is a member of the teaching and research staff in the Laboratory of Dairy Research at the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition of the Agricultural University of Athens. She graduated from the Department of Food Science and Technology of the Agricultural University of Athens in 2002 and obtained her PhD from the same University in 2008. During her PhD thesis, she has obtained a Scholarship for postgraduate studies from the Marie Curie Fellowship Organization (for one year in the Laboratory of Lactic Acid Bacteria and Mucosal Immunity at the Institute Pasteur of Lille, France) and a Scholarship for postgraduate studies from the State Scholarships Foundation of Greece (Ι.Κ.Υ.). She has co-authored 31 publications in peer-reviewed journals and four book chapters. She has participated in 52 International and 18 Greek Conferences. Her research interests include probiotic properties, isolation, physiology, metabolism and technological performance of lactic acid bacteria, and she has been scientifically involved in several National and European funded projects. She is a scientific member of the ACA-DC Culture Collection of the Laboratory of Dairy Research and an active reviewer in peer-review scientific journals.

Mrs Paschalitsa Tryfinopoulou, graduate of the Agricultural University of Athens, acquired a PhD in Agricultural Sciences, and is a member of the Laboratory Teaching Staff in the Laboratory of Food Microbiology and Biotechnology, in the research field of "Food Microbiology".

She is teaching the laboratory exercises of the courses Food Microbiology and Quantitative Food Microbiology and participates in the preparation of degree studies at both under and post graduate level. As well as co-teaching the interdisciplinary course Safety and Quality of Animal Origin Products.

She is involved in more than 20 research projects and her research interests include: (a) microbial ecology and the interaction of microorganisms, (b) identification of microorganisms and the study of their metabolic products, (c) application of rapid techniques in study of microbial ecosystems, d) molecular techniques applied to microorganisms and food ecosystems. Her authorship is described in Scopus ID 6505921484.

Professor on Instrumental Chemical Analysis of Natural Products.

Research Interests:
• Isolation, purification and structure determination of natural products using chromatographic (GC-MS/MS, LC-UV/Vis-MS/MS) and spectroscopic techniques (UV-Vis, FT-IR, FT-Raman, NMR).
• Development of new techniques for separation, evaluation and analysis of main compounds of plants cultivated in Greece as Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (MAPs), Saffron (Crocus sativus L.) etc.
• Study of Biological Activity of Natural Products (Antioxidant, Antimicrobial, Toxicity etc.)
• Instrumental analysis methods of plants and food analysis.
• FT-IR & Raman Spectroscopic study of microorganisms.
• Development methods for quality determination, adulteration and authenticity (botanical and geographical origin) of food (honey, olive oil etc).

Publications in International Journals (Scopus 2024.06.01): 182, 2020-2024: 49
(Articles: 155; Reviews: 14; Conference Papers: 10; Editorial: 2; Erratum 1.
Citations (Exclude self-citations of all authors): 8340; Subtotal 2020-2024: 3327.
h-index: 52

Marina Georgalaki is a member of the teaching and research associates stuff in the Laboratory of Dairy Research of the Agricultural University of Athens. She has graduated from the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition of the Agricultural University of Athens and has a MSc Degree of Applied Food Microbiology from the Universities of Caen, Brest and Rennes, France. Her PhD Thesis was elaborated in the Institute of Biological Research and Biotechnology of the National Hellenic Research Foundation. She has obtained a Scholarship for Post-Doc Research from the State Scholarships Foundation of Greece (Ι.Κ.Υ.) and two patents as a member of a scientific team. She has co-authored 43 publications including 41 in refereed journals and has participated in 60 International and 40 Greek Conferences. She is an active reviewer in peer-review scientific journals. Her research interests include isolation, physiology, metabolism, probiotic properties, antimicrobial peptide production and technological performance of lactic acid bacteria, as well as biochemical and bioactive properties of olives and olive oil. She has been scientifically involved in several National and European projects. She speaks English, French and Korean at an elementary level.

Assistant professor in Dairy Science & Technology

Professor in Dairy Science
Education: PhD in Dairy Technology, Agricultural University of Athens, Diploma in Agricultural Science (Specialization in Food Science & Technology), Agricultural University of Athens

Research and Teaching expertise:
Composition, properties and biochemistry of different kinds of raw milk and dairy products made there from. Caseins and whey proteins. Dairy technology; effect of processing on the characteristics of milk and dairy products. Endogenous enzymes and milk treatments. Cheese science and technology; interventions, physicochemical and biochemical aspects, factors and course of ripening. Analysis of milk and dairy products; authenticity. Various whey types and by products resulting from dairy processing. Development of dairy products; circular products; improvement of nutritional and functional properties.
Synopsis of publications: 75 international Journals and Books, 3 national Journals, 39 Announcements in international Conferences, 11 in national Conferences, 14 in national scientific events.
Citations: >1000, h-index: 21 and i10: 38 [self-citations of all authors are excluded]
Research Projects: 5 as Principal Investigator and 11 as member of the Research Team
Other indicative scientific activities:
Member of Editorial Board of 5 SCI Journals in the field of Dairy and Food Science
Reviewer of >220 manuscripts submitted to 27 SCI Journals.
Guest Editor of 6 Special Issues in Dairy Science and Technology.

Assistant Professor of Clinical Counselling and Dietary Behavior

Mr Emmanuel A. Bouzas graduated from Chemistry Department of the University of Patras and acquired his PhD in Organic Synthesis at the Laboratory of General Chemistry of Agricultural University of Athens (AUA) and the Laboratory of Natural Product Synthesis and Bioorganic Chemistry of the National Center for Scientific Research (NCSR) "Demokritos". He is member of the Laboratory Teaching Staff at the Laboratory of General Chemistry of AUA with the research activity "Organic Chemistry with emphasis on the Synthesis of Natural Products". His teaching work mainly concerns laboratory exercises of the undergraduate courses General & Inorganic Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Instrumental Chemical Analysis and Natural Products: Chemistry and Bioactivity. His research work comprises 5 scientific publications in peer-reviewed international journals, 13 conference presentations and 1 laboratory text book.

Stamatina Kallithraka is a graduate of the Chemistry department of the AUTH, with postgraduate studies in Food Science - University of Reading/UK, and PhD in Wine Chemistry - University of Surrey, UK. From 1998 to 2001 she was employed at the Mediterranean Agricultural Institute of Chania (MAICH) as Head of the postgraduate department of 'Food Quality Management'. From 2001 to 2011 she has worked as a researcher at the Wine Institute with the subject "wine chemistry". From 2012 to 2107 shewas an Assistant Professor of oenology at the Agricultural University of Athens and from 2022 she is a Professor of oenology. He has more than 85 publications in peer-reviewed international journals, 7 chapters in books and more than 70 participations in international conferences. Her research activity focuses on the study of the chemical composition of wines with an emphasis on polyphenolic compounds, their antioxidant activity and their organoleptic character and is funded by competitive programs.

Dr Aikaterini Kandyliari is a member of the Laboratory Teaching Staff of Food Chemistry and Human Nutrition of the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition in Agricultural University of Athens. She obtained her bachelor’s degree in Chemistry at National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (2009) and her PhD in Food Chemistry in Agricultural University of Athens (2019). Since 2015 she has worked in several national and international research projects implemented by Agricultural University of Athens (2015-today), National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (2016-2018), Yale University (2018-2019), Prolepsis Institute (2019-2022) and University of Aegean (2020-today).

Her research interests focus on the

She is the co-author of 11 research papers in peer reviewed journals and 17 international conference proceedings.

Nikolaos G. Stoforos, a Chemical Engineer (National Technical University of Athens, 1978), is Professor in Food Engineering - Food Preservation at the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, School of Food and Nutritional Sciences, of Agricultural University of Athens (AUA), Greece (2016-present). He holds a Ph.D. in Engineering (1988) and a Master of Science in Food Science (1984) from the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, and the Department of Food Science and Technology at University of California, Davis, USA, respectively. He worked as Research Engineer at the National Food Processors Association, Western Research Laboratory, Process Technologies Division, Dublin, CA, USA, (1989 – 1992), the Department of Food and Microbial Technology at Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Heverlee, Belgium, (1994 – 1995) and the Department of Chemical Engineering at the National Technical University of Athens, Greece, (1996 – 2000). From 2000 till 2009 he served as an Assistant Professor in Food Process Engineering at the Department of Chemical Engineering at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece and from 2009 to 2015 as Associate Professor at the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition at AUA His research interests refer to safety and quality evaluation of foods with main focus on mathematical/kinetic modeling of safety and quality attribute changes during food processing or storage. His research focuses on food processing and preservation with emphasis on thermal processing (thermal process calculation methodologies, aseptic processing, time-temperature integrators), high pressure processing, predictive microbiology, and kinetic modeling at dynamic temperature conditions. He has published 45 research papers in peer reviewed journals, 9 book chapters, 19 chapters in international and 29 in national conference proceedings and 42 presentations in international meetings. He is the author of one book, has been co-editor of 5 books and 2 special issue journals and has over 1200 citations (h index=16).

Mrs Dimitra Daferera graduated from Department of Agricultural Industries, now Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition of Agricultural University of Athens (A.U.A.), she acquired Ph.D. in Agricultural Sciences, and she is member of the Laboratory Teaching Staff at the Laboratory of General Chemistry of A.U.A. with research activity “Instrumental Analysis of Natural Products”.

She is teaching lab exercises of the courses Instrumental Chemical Analysis, General and Inorganic Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Natural Products: Chemistry and Bioactivity, and she is supporting undergraduate and postgraduate students to carry out their diploma study and/or their practical exercise. 

Her research interests focus on aromatic and medicinal plants, emphasizing the isolation and study of their secondary metabolites, concerning their chemistry and bioactivity. She has participated in 18 research programs, and her research work comprises 104 publications, 34 to national and international conferences, and 70 in international scientific journals which present a high number of citations (excluding self-citations).

Dr. Efstathios Z. Panagou is Professor of Quantitative Food Microbiology at the Agricultural University of Athens. He completed his postgraduate studies at Cranfield University in the United Kingdom during the period 1990-1991, where he obtained a Master of Science degree in Postharvest Technology. In 2002, he was awarded a doctoral degree in Food Microbiology from the Department of Food Science and Technology of the Agricultural University of Athens. He worked at the National Agricultural Research Foundation (NAGREF), initially at the Directorate of International Relations, Documentation and Informatics (1994-1998) and then at the Institute of Technology of Agricultural Products as research staff (1998-2007). In April 2007, he joined the Laboratory of Food Microbiology and Biotechnology at the Department of Food Science and Technology as a Lecturer. His research interests focus on (a) the implementation of rapid and non-invasive instrumental techniques (Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy, multispectral imaging, electronic nose) in food quality assessment during storage under different temperature regimes and packaging conditions in tandem with multivariate data analysis and machine learning techniques, (b) the use of mathematical models to quantify the effect of intrinsic (pH, aw, redox potential, etc.) and extrinsic (temperature, modified atmospheres, etc.) factors on the behavior (growth, survival, death) of spoilage and pathogenic microorganisms on food ecosystems, (c) the study of the population dynamics and microbial ecology of microorganisms implicated in the fermentation of plant-derived food products with main emphasis on table olives, with special focus on the isolation, characterization and use of selected microorganisms with probiotic potential as starter cultures in the fermentation process, and (d) the study of the ecophysiology of fungi on food ecosystems with main focus on mycotoxigenic fungi, especially black Aspergilli (Aspergillus section Nigri) in wine and vine products. Dr. Panagou has co-authored 130 original research papers in peer-reviewed scientific journals of the SCI with over 4500 citations (h­-index = 38) and 16 book chapters after invitation and more than . He is co-inventor of the “Probiotic Olives” patent for the production of functional table olives. Currently, he is member of the editorial board of Food Microbiology and Journal of Food Protection.

Dr Chrysavgi Gardeli has been an Assistant Professor in Food Chemistry at the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition (AUA) since 2018. She received her M.Sc in Food Science & Technology by the Humberside University (UK) and a Ph.D. of Agricultural Sciences by Agricultural University of Athens (AUA) in 2009.

She has participated in 12 projects funded from EU, national and private organizations as member or partner, and is co-author in 34 research papers in international journals, and 38 international and national conference proceedings. Her work has been cited more than 1235 times (h-index = 17).

Her research interests focus on:

Dr. Athanasios Mallouchos obtained his diploma in Chemistry in 1997 from the University of Athens (Greece), his M.Sc. in 1999 and his Ph.D. in 2003 from the Department of Chemistry, University of Patras (Greece). In 2004, he worked as post-doctoral researcher at the Department of Food Science and Technology of the Agricultural University of Athens (AUA). During 2004-2014, he worked in the private and public sector as a chemist. In 2014, he joined the AUA as a full-time lecturer and currently he is assistant professor in Food Analysis.

His research interests focus on: (a) the determination of volatile compounds for the assessment of food quality, spoilage and adulteration, (b) food metabolomics, (c) isolation and determination of antioxidant compounds (phenolics) from aromatic-pharmaceutical plants and plant-derived foods, (d) microbial and food lipid analysis. (e) chemical investigation and exploitation of by-products of the food industry as a source of high-value compounds (antioxidants, colorants), (f) chemical analysis of fermented food products (wine, beer, table olives, etc).

He has participated in 13 funded research projects, and is co-author in 69 research papers in international journals, 4 book chapters and 29 international conference proceedings. His work has been cited more than 2565 times (h-index = 28).

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NEWSLETTER

The Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition (renamed Department of Food Science and Technology, Decree 80/27/5/13, Government Gazette A119 28/5/13) offers its students the scientific background for a rational approach to scientific and technological issues related to the food sector.
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