Charilaos (Harry) Filippakis, Ph.D.

Harry Filippakis was born in Heraklion, Crete, Greece and was always drawn to biological sciences. This became the driving force behind his decision to study abroad at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland. After receiving his bachelor’s degree (Hons) in Genetics he moved back to Greece to attend the graduate program of Molecular Basis of Human Disease at the University of Crete, Medical School. In 2011, Harry earned his Ph.D. with a focus on the impact of human cytomegalovirus infection on the tumorigenic Ras signaling pathway. Harry then moved to the United States to study oncogenic viruses and chromosomal instability as a postdoctoral fellow at Tufts Medical Center. In 2013, Dr. Filippakis joined the laboratory of Dr. Elizabeth Henske at Brigham & Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, where he worked on understanding how nutrient uptake and recycling contribute to the pathogenesis of TSC and LAM.

Dr. Filippakis is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biomedical Sciences at the University of New England, College of Osteopathic Medicine. His laboratory focuses on macropinocytosis, lysosomal metabolism, and autophagy in mTORC1-hyperactive cells, integrating metabolomic, proteomic, and transcriptomic methodologies and in vivo models. Harry has been funded by The LAM Foundation, and by the Department of Defense Kidney Cancer Research Program. 

Research interests:

Mechanisms of aberrant mTORC1 activation | Macropinocytosis | Metabolic reprograming in Tuberous Sclerosis Complex (TSC) and Lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM) | Cancer metabolism

https://filippakislab.org/