Hi I'm
Prof Spiridoula Athanasiadou

I'm a qualified veterinarian from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece, and now a professor of veterinary gastrointestinal health at SRUC. I arrived in Scotland in 1997 to do a PhD in ruminant nutrition and health. At the time, I thought I would stay in this beautiful but extremely cold country for 3 years and not a day longer. 27 years later, it’s safe to say that Scotland is home.

My research work is focusing on host-pathogen interactions and sustainable disease control strategies in ruminants, to mitigate production losses, drug resistance, and greenhouse gas emissions. I have coordinated and been a leader in large multidisciplinary projects on novel diagnostics and disease control strategies. With the help of previous PhD students and other scientists, we have developed multiple in vitro and in vivo infection models, which we use to investigate novel therapeutics. I am always trying to inspire the younger generation of scientists and infuse my enthusiasm to undergraduate and postgraduate students at SRUC on all aspects of host-pathogen interactions.

An important part of my work is to maintain links with groups of stakeholders, including farmers and policy makers, which facilitate research outputs dissemination and implementation. Part of my research is made possible by working with the industry and funded by government and industry organisations. I'm always looking for collaboration opportunities to deliver real world impact for livestock production systems.

Away from work, I love spending time with family and friends. The gym is my happy place and my daily non-negotiable; it helps with my physical and mental health and wellbeing.