Chief Executive Officer and Medical Director
Head of the Molecular Genetics, Function & Therapy Department
Professor & Provost
The Cyprus Institute of Neurology & Genetics
Selected Publications:
1. Philippou S, Mastroyiannopoulos NP, Makrides N, Lederer CW, Kleanthous M, Phylactou LA. Selection and identification of skeletal muscle-targeted RNA aptamers. Molecular Therapy-Nucleic Acids. 2018 Mar2;10:199-214. Doi: 10.1016/j.omtn.2017.12.004. Epub 2017 Dec 9.
2. Koutsoulidou A, Photiades M, Kyriakides TC, Georgiou K, Prokopi M, Kapnisis K, Lusakowska A, Nearchou M, Christou Y, Papadimas GK, Anayiotos A, Kyriakou K, Kararizou E, Zamba Papanicolaou E, Phylactou LA. Identification of Exosomal Muscle-Specific miRNAs in Serum of Myotonic Dystrophy Patients Relating to Muscular Disease Progress. Hum Mol Genet. 2017 Sep 1;26(17):3285-3302. Doi: 10.1093/hmg/ddx212 [Epub 2017 Jun 16].
3. Demetris Koutalianos, Andrie Koutsoulidou, Nikolaos P. Mastroyiannopoulos, Denis Furling, and Leonidas A. Phylactou. MyoD transcription factor induces myogenesis by inhibiting Twist-1 through miR-206. J Cell Sci. 2015 Aug 13. pii: jcs.172288. [Epub ahead of print].
4. Andrie Koutsoulidou, Tassos Kyriakides, Yiolanda Christou, Eleni Zamba Papanicolaou, Leonidas A. Phylactou. Elevated muscle-specific miRNAs in serum of myotonic dystrophy patients relate to disease progress. PLoS ONE. 2015 Apr 27;10(4):e0125341.
5. Antonis Antoniou, Nikolaos P. Mastroyiannopoulos, James B. Uney, Leonidas A. Phylactou. miR-186 inhibits muscle cell differentiation through myogenin regulation. J Biol Chem. 2014 Feb 14;289(7):3923-35. doi: 10.1074/jbc.M113.507343. Epub 2014 Jan 2.
6. Christos Shammas, Vassos Neocleous, Marie M Phelan, Lu-Yun Lian, Nicos Skordis and Leonidas A Phylactou. A report of 2 new cases of MODY2 and review of the literature: implications for new drug development for type 2 Diabetes. Metabolism. 2013 Nov;62(11):1535-42. doi: 10.1016/j.metabol.2013.06.007. Epub 2013 Jul 24.
7. Alexia AP Phedonos, Christos Shammas, Nicos Skordis, Tassos Kyriakides, Vassos Neocleous and Leonidas A Phylactou. High carrier frequency of CAH in the Cypriot population. Clin Genet. 2013 Dec;84(6):585-588. doi: 10.1111/cge.12153. Epub 2013 Apr 22.
8. Mastroyiannopoulos NP, Nicolaou P, Anayasa M, Uney JB, Phylactou LA. Down-regulation of Myogenin can reverse terminal muscle cell differentiation. PLoS ONE 2012; 7(1): e29896. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0029896.
9. Nicolaos P. Mastroyiannopoulos, Andrie Koutsoulidou and Leonidas A. Phylactou. Myotonic Dystrophy Type 1: Focus on the RNA pathology and therapy. InTech Publishers “Muscular Dystrophy”. Edited by Madhuri Hegde and Arunkanth Ankala, ISBN 978-953-51-0603-6, Hard cover, 544 pages, Publisher: InTech, DOI: 10.5772/1242Published: May 09, 2012,pp 499-544, 2012.
10. Neocleous V, Ioannou YS, Bartsota M, Costi C, Skordis N, Phylactou LA. Rare mutations in the CYP21A2 gene detected in congenital adrenal hyperplasia. Clin Biochem. 2009 Sep;42(13-14):1363-7. Epub 2009 Jun 6. PubMed PMID: 19501079.
11. Mastroyiannopoulos NP, Feldman ML, Uney JB, Mahadevan MS, Phylactou LA. Woodchuck post-transcriptional element induces nuclear export of myotonic dystrophy 3' untranslated region transcripts. EMBO Rep. 2005 May;6(5):458-63. PubMed PMID: 15832171; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC1299300.
12. Georgiou TK, Vamvakaki M, Patrickios CS, Yamasaki EN, Phylactou LA. Nanoscopic cationic methacrylate star homopolymers: synthesis by group transfer polymerization, characterization and evaluation as transfection reagents. Biomacromolecules. 2004 Nov-Dec;5(6):2221-9. PubMed PMID: 15530036.
13. Phylactou LA, Kilpatrick MW, Wood MJ. Ribozymes as therapeutic tools for genetic disease. Hum Mol Genet. 1998;7(10):1649-53. Review. PubMed PMID: 9735387.
14. Phylactou LA, Darrah C, Wood MJ. Ribozyme-mediated trans-splicing of a trinucleotide repeat. Nat Genet. 1998 Apr;18(4):378-81. PubMed PMID: 9537423.