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CLOSEThe Institute of Chemical Biology (ICB) is the only institute in Greece dedicated to cutting-edge research at the interface of Chemistry and Biology. Through an integrative, interdisciplinary approach, ICB addresses critical challenges in health, drug discovery, and biotechnology.
ICB draws upon and combines the expertise and synergies of its scientific personnel with its state-of-the-art infrastructure, aiming to promote research, education and innovation. ICB by continuously strengthening its uniqueness has succeeded in maximizing its research performance and impact within the national and international research ecosystem.
Newsroom
The installation and site acceptance tests of the new cryo-electron microscopy cryo-EM instruments at the NHRF are currently being performed, marking a major milestone for the establishment of the institute’s advanced imaging infrastructure.
The Krios G4 microscope has already produced its first high-resolution cryo-EM micrograph of apoferritin, highlighting the successful deployment of the new infrastructure and its readiness to support cutting-edge research in structural biology and nanoscience.
A new research article co-authored by Prof. Panagiotis Kastritis and Dr. Fotis Kyrilis has been published in one of the most prestigious journals of multidisciplinary science: The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). The study, addresses a long-standing question in biochemistry regarding how water molecules behave around proteins under acidic conditions. Using atomic-level visualization, the researchers observed that increasing acidity leads to the release of hundreds of water molecules, while a structured hydration shell remains partially preserved.
Dr. Fotis Kyrilis, Post Doctoral Associate of ICB and member of the ERA Chair Hot4Cryo project team has been awarded funding through the 4th Call for H.F.R.I. Research Projects supporting Postdoctoral Researchers, for the project “Integrative structural investigation of macroH2A nucleosomes and definition of the mechanistic insights that involve them in altering transcription profiles”, with a total budget of €99,437, starting in April 2026.
Dr Theodora Katsila, Senior Researcher and Head of the Biomarker Discovery & Translational Research Laboratory at the ICB/NHRF has been elected Chair of the Marketing and Outreach Committee (MOC) of the Human Proteome Organization (HUPO), the leading global body in Proteomics. This role further enhances opportunities for international collaboration and participation in global research networks of scientific excellence. This appointment recognizes Dr Katsila’s scientific contribution in proteoform-based multi-omics analysis and the repurposing of drugs, advanced materials, and smart systems, as well as the strategic framework developed within the NHRF Centre of Excellence.
Strategic research pillars
ICB is unique in Greece in Drug research employing a comprehensive integrated approach encompassing all the stages of Drug discovery (structural biology, design, synthesis, biological evaluation in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo, development of nanocarriers for effective delivery) combined with translational research (collaboration with clinicians, biomarker, big data analysis).
ICB applies a combination of holistic chemical, biological and computational technologies (genomics, epigenomics, proteomics, transcriptomics and metabolomics) to characterize a wide range of samples, to study the mechanism of disease onset and progression and the efficacy/toxicity of drugs and other therapeutic approaches, and for the discovery of biomarkers related to environmental exposure, population heterogeneity, disease pathogenesis and development of drug resistance.
ICB applies biotechnological approaches, nanotechnology and green chemistry to produce compounds and nanocarriers with applications in food, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and chemicals.
Click on a pillar for more information
Research Infrastructure & Services
ICB has state-of-the-art scientific equipment and is currently considered one of the best equipped research institutes in Greece, particularly in the fields of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), Mass Spectrometry (MS) and X-ray Protein Crystallography.
ICB together with the TPCI, operate a large set of advanced instrumentation, acquired through funding from the European Union – NextGenerationEU, co-financed by national resources and the European Investment Bank, within the framework of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan “Greece 2.0”.
An integral part of ICB’s activities is the provision of specialized services to research and technology centers, universities, health institutions and industries both in the country and abroad.
ICB researchers, utilizing their expertise and the Institute’s state-of-the-art infrastructure, provide scientific services in selected application areas to academic institutions, health institutions (hospitals) and the private sector (Pharmaceutical Industry, Chemical, Food & Cosmetics Industry).