Assistant Professor
Thaleia Tsiaka is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Food Science and Technology at the University of West Attica. She has also served as a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the same department (2019–2023) as well as at the Institute of Chemical Biology (ICB) of the National Hellenic Research Foundation (NHRF) (2019–2023).
She holds a PhD in Chemistry (2019) in the field of Analytical Chemistry from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), where she also earned her Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry (2008). She received her Master’s degree (2012) with a specialization in “Chemical Analysis–Quality Control” from NKUA as well.
Her scientific work primarily focuses on the following research fields/activities:
(a) Food and bioanalysis sciences using instrumental analytical techniques, with an emphasis on the development and validation of liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC-MS) methodologies. These are applied in both non-targeted and targeted analyses of:
- (a) foods/food by-products to evaluate their phytochemical profile and the factors affecting it (storage, harvesting period, thermal or other processes, etc.), and
- (b) biological fluids to study the impact of nutritional factors on health.
(b) Optimization of non-conventional, high-energy extraction techniques (ultrasound-assisted extraction – UAE, microwave-assisted extraction – MAE) for recovering plant extracts and determining various categories of bioactive compounds using experimental design models (DOE).
From 2020 to 2021, she worked as an academic fellow teaching laboratory courses such as “Chemical Composition and Quality of Foods,” “Instrumental Food Analysis,” and “Biochemistry.” During 2022–2023, she taught undergraduate courses funded by the NSRF program, including “Food Industry By-product Management and Utilization” and “Research Methodology–Terminology.” Since 2022, she has also been teaching in the Postgraduate Program “Innovation, Quality, and Food Safety – Food Innovation, Quality and Safety” of the Department of Food Science and Technology, School of Food Sciences, University of West Attica (UWA).
From 2013 to the present, she has participated in 9 nationally funded research projects and she has filed 2 patents. In 2008, she completed her internship as an analyst in the Department of Alcoholic Beverages, Spirits, and Honey at the General State Chemical Laboratory.
She has published more than 35 original scientific articles in high-impact peer-reviewed international journals, as well as book chapters. Results of her research have been presented both orally and in poster sessions at scientific conferences.
Links
Currently teaching (undergraduate)
Instrumental Food Analysis (Laboratory)
Chemical Composition and Quality of Food (Laboratory)