Dr Nik Sgourakis

Dr. Sgourakis earned his PhD in Biology from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 2009, working with Angel Garcia on computational simulations of intrinsically disordered proteins, and a Master’s degree in Bioinformatics from the National University of Athens, Greece. As an undergraduate student, he developed machine learning algorithms for predicting properties of G-protein coupled receptors currently used in pharmacology and drug discovery. 

In his first postdoctoral training with David Baker at the University of Washington, Dr. Sgourakis developed methods for modeling the structures of protein complexes by integrating NMR with cryoelectron microscopy data. During follow-up postdoctoral work with Ad Bax at the National Institutes of Health, he carried out Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy studies of virus/host protein interactions involved in immune evasion, and the establishment of latency, in close collaboration with the group of David Margulies. 

With these skills in hand, he has developed an independent research program at the interface of biophysics and structural biology, where experimental and computational tools are developed and applied to tackle contemporary problems in molecular immunology and immuno-oncology. The long-term goal of the Sgourakis group is to develop novel targeted therapeutics to combat malignant brain tumors.