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George P. Chrousos delivers the Honorary 2022 Gemzell Lecture at the University of Uppsala, Sweden, for Major Contributions to Reproductive Science, Obstetrics and Gynecology

George P. Chrousos delivers the Honorary 2022 Gemzell Lecture at the University of Uppsala, Sweden, for Major Contributions to Reproductive Science, Obstetrics and Gynecology

On 22 September 2022, Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics and Endocrinology of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens George P. Chrousos delivered the honorary 2022 Carl Gemzell  Lecture, at Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden. Professor Chrousos was appointed as Carl Gemzell lecturer for his for major contributions to Reproductive Science, Obstetrics and Gynecology. His lecture was entitled  “The Roles of Genetics and Epigenetics in Human Evolution and Development”.

Within the context of his well known studies on stress and steroid hormone mechanisms of action, professor G.P. Chrousos described target-tissue resistance to the steroid hormones estrogen and progesterone in an experimentally useful, unique animal model, the New World primates, which he subsequently demonstrated to have a form of generalized tissue “pan-steroid/sterol” hormone resistance. This model predicted the existence of common cellular co-activators and co-repressors in the steroid/sterol signaling systems and the presence of several steroid resistance and hypersensitivity  syndromes in humans. In parallel, he studied various issues in human reproduction. He published one of the first descriptions of Late-onset Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia (CAH) in adult women, men, and children, first determined the incidence of 21-hydroxylase deficiency in women with the polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), and performed the first human study on the effects of dexamethasone therapy of CAH in utero. He then described the increased presence of sleep apnea and elevated circulating cytokines in young women with PCOS.

He also studied the interactions of pubertal and stress hormones, the pubertal stages, and the psychosocial adjustment in adolescents of both sexes during the pubertal period. He continued with studies on the effects of stress on adolescent and/or adult pregnancy, labor, delivery, and birth outcome. Determined and studied the secretion of corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) by female reproductive tissues, such as the ovaries, the endometrium and the placenta, and demonstrated  its physiologic importance in blastocyst implantation, pregnancy, labor and delivery and the postpartum. He performed detailed studies on affective and eating disorders in female adolescents and adults, and examined the effects of stress hormones on several reproductive functions in animal models and humans. He reported studies on the endocrine, immune, and emotional changes in pregnancy and the postpartum and uncovered the hormonal etiology of the postpartum “blues” and depression. He also performed the early, seminal pre-clinical and clinical studies on the reproductive, metabolic, inflammatory, and behavioral effects of the anti-progestin RU 486 in rodents, nonhuman primates and humans.

Prof. Chrousos studied children conceived by ART, both by classic IVF and ICSI, and showed that they have an increased risk of developing dysmetabolic syndrome by blood biochemistry, and by metabolomic and proteomic evaluations. He also studied women with gestational diabetes and determined prognostic biomarkers of the pregnancy outcome. In Europe, he was involved in several large multicenter, multinational studies on pregnancy, gestational weight gain and pregnancy outcome. He also participated in studies on the healthy growth of European children and adolescents.

The “MOVE AS YOU ARE” Program – Project is co-funded by the European Union through the Erasmus+ program in the field of Sports

The “MOVE AS YOU ARE” Program – Project is co-funded by the European Union through the Erasmus+ program in the field of Sports

Globally, the Child Eye Health organization estimates that at least 450 million children have vision conditions requiring treatment, and 90 million children live with some form of vision loss. In Europe, the European Blind Union (EBU) (https://www.euroblind.org/) estimates that 30 million people are visually impaired. These figures highlight the significant scale of the problem and […]

National and Kapodistrian University of Athens ranks first in Greece and Cyprus – Times Higher Education University Impact Rankings 2025 and US News Global University Rankings 2025-2026 announced

National and Kapodistrian University of Athens ranks first in Greece and Cyprus – Times Higher Education University Impact Rankings 2025 and US News Global University Rankings 2025-2026 announced

US News & World Report Media Company has recently published the results of its Best Global Universities Rankings for 2025-2026. In this 11th consecutive annual edition of the US News Best Global Universities Rankings, the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens placed 1st among Greek and Cypriot Universities and 216th worldwide. Aristotle University of Thessaloniki […]

Once again, top-scoring candidates choose the University of Athens

Once again, top-scoring candidates choose the University of Athens

It is a day of joy for many candidates who have recently sat the nationwide examinations for admission to Greece’s Higher Educational Institutions. Among this year’s top achievers—those scoring over 19,000 points—a significant number have once again set their sights on enrolling in the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA). One of the highest […]

Renovated ‘New Chemistry Laboratory Building’ opens officially – School of Education, Library of the Department of Economics

Renovated ‘New Chemistry Laboratory Building’ opens officially – School of Education, Library of the Department of Economics

In a particularly symbolic and emotional opening ceremony, the renovated ‘New Chemistry Laboratory Building’ was officially handed over to the academic community of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. This historic building lies at the heart of Athens, surrounded on three sides by Mavromichali, Navarinou, and Charilaou Trikoupi streets. With the completion of the […]

Prof. Dr. Xenofon Baraliakos, Medical Director of the Rheumazentrum Ruhrgebiet, Herne, and Doctor Honoris Causa of the School of Medicine of the University of Athens, is the new president of the European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR)

Prof. Dr. Xenofon Baraliakos, Medical Director of the Rheumazentrum Ruhrgebiet, Herne, and Doctor Honoris Causa of the School of Medicine of the University of Athens, is the new president of the European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR)

Prof. Dr. Xenofon Baraliakos, Medical Director of the Rheumazentrum Ruhrgebiet, Herne, and Professor for Internal Medicine and Rheumatology at the Ruhr University Bochum, Germany, is the new president of the European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR). During his two-year term, he plans to implement a number of measures aimed at further improving patient care […]

Alpha TV: NKUA ranks among the top 100 Universities in the world

Alpha TV: NKUA ranks among the top 100 Universities in the world

Rectors and Vice-Rectors from 54 Universities in Europe met at the historic main building of the University of Athens to participate in the 35th General Assembly of the UNICA Network of Universities from the Capitals of Europe, which took place for the first time in Greece earlier this month. At the same time, the University […]

The 35th General Assembly of the Universities from the Capitals of Europe (UNICA) closes at NKUA with great success and participation from across the continent

The 35th General Assembly of the Universities from the Capitals of Europe (UNICA) closes at NKUA with great success and participation from across the continent

With the symbolic strength of Athens’ scholarly tradition encompassing contemporary academic collaboration, the 35th General Assembly of the Universities from the Capitals of Europe (UNICA) closed at the historic main building of the University of Athens. The proceedings began on Thursday, 19 June, with the UNICA Administrative General Assembly. The meeting, held in a hybrid […]

University of Athens

The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, which was inaugurated on May 3, 1837, was initially housed in a renovated Ottoman building on the northeastern side of the Acropolis. This building has since been restored and now functions as the University Museum. Originally named the "Othonian University," after Otto, the first king of Greece, it consisted of four academic departments and 52 students. As the first university of the newly established Greek state, as well as of the broader Balkan and Mediterranean region, it assumed an important socio-historical role, which was pivotal in the development of specific forms of knowledge and culture within the country.

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