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Dr. Despoina Lymperopoulou, DPhil
- Ph.D. in Biological Sciences (Microbial Ecology & Environmental Microbiology) – Mar 2010, National & Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece
- MSc in Microbial Biotechnology – Jul 2005, National & Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece - University of Warwick, UK
- BSc Degree in Biology – Feb 2004, National & Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece
- Nov 2017 - present University of California, Berkeley - Research Specialist
- Nov 2014 - Nov 2017 University of California, Berkeley - Postdoctoral Research Fellow
- May 2013 - Aug 2014 Old Dominion University - Postdoctoral Research Associate
- May 2011 - Jul 2012 Florida A&M University (FAMU) - Postdoctoral Research Associate
- Misztal, P., Adams, R., Lymperopoulou, D.S., Bruns, T., Taylor, J., Lindow, S., Nazaroff, W., and Goldstein, A. What controls the variance in microbial volatile organic compounds (MVOC) across microbial taxa? Env Sci Technol, 2 (15), pp 8272–8282, doi: 10.1021/acs.est.8b00806
- Adams R.I., Lymperopoulou D.S., Misztal P.K., De Cassia Pessotti R., Behie S.W., Tian Y., Goldstein A.H, Lindow S.E., Nazaroff W.W., Taylor J.W., Traxler M.F., Bruns T.D. Microbes and associated soluble and volatile chemicals on periodically wet household surfaces. Microbiome, doi: 10.1186/s40168-017-0347-6.
- J.B. Emerson, R.I. Adams, C.M. Betancourt Román, B. Brooks, D. A. Coil, K. Dahlhausen, H.H. Ganz, E.M. Hartmann, T. Hsu, N.B. Justice, I.G.P. Lima, J.C. Luongo, D.S. Lymperopoulou, C. Gomez-Silvan, B. Rothschild-Mancinelli, M. Balk, A. Nocker, P. Vaishampayan, L.J. Rothschild. Schrödinger’s microbes: Distinguishing the living from the dead in microbial ecosystems. Microbiome, doi: 10.1186/s40168-017-0285-3.
- D.S. Lymperopoulou, F.C. Dobbs (2017) Bacterial diversity in ships’ ballast water, ballast-water exchange, and implications for ship-mediated dispersal of microorganisms. Environmental Science & Technology, doi: 10.1021/acs.est.6b03108.
- Lymperopoulou DS, Coil DA, Schichnes D, Lindow SE, Jospin G, Eisen JA, Adams RI (2017) Draft genome sequences of eight bacteria isolated from the indoor environment: Staphylococcus capitis strain H36, S. capitis strain H65, S. cohnii strain H62, S. hominis strain H69, Microbacterium sp. strain H83, Mycobacterium iranicum strain H39, Plantibacter sp. strain H53, and Pseudomonas oryzihabitans strain H72. SIGS - Standards in Genomic Sciences, doi: 10.1186/s40793-017-0223-9.
- Lymperopoulou DS, Adams RI, Lindow SE (2016) Contribution of vegetation to the microbial composition of nearby outdoor air. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 82(13):3822-33. doi: 10.1128/AEM.00610-16.
- H.N. Williams*, D.S. Lymperopoulou*, R. Athar, A. Chauhan, T.L. Dickerson, H. Chen, E. Laws, T. Berhane, A. Flowers, N. Bradley, S. Young, J. Murray, O. Mustapha, C. Blackwell, Y. Tung, R.T. Noble (2015) Bacteriovorax, an underestimated player in bacterial predation, rivals viruses in bacterial mortality, ISME Journal. doi: 10.1038/ismej.2015.129. *First co-author - Contributed equally to this work.
- H. Chen, L.M. Brinkac, P. Mishra, N. Li, T. Dickerson, N. Gordon-Bradley, D.S. Lymperopoulou, H.N. Williams, J.H. Badger (2015) Draft Genome Sequences for the obligate bacterial predators Bacteriovorax spp. of four phylogenetic clusters, SIGS - Standards in Genomic Sciences. doi: 10.1186/1944-3277-10-11.
- N. Bradley, D.S. Lymperopoulou and H.N. Williams (2014) Differences in Bacterial Community Structure on Hydrilla verticillata and Vallisneria americana in a Freshwater Spring, Microbes and Environments 29(1): 67-73. doi: 10.1264/jsme2.ME13064.
- K.A. Kormas and D.S. Lymperopoulou (2013) Cyanobacterial toxin degrading bacteria: who are they? Biomed Res Int. doi: 10.1155/2013/463894.
- S. Pineiro, A. Chauhan, T. Berhane, R. Athar, G. Zheng, C. Wang, T. Dickerson, X. Liang, D.S. Lymperopoulou, H. Chen, M. Christman, C. Louime, W. Babiker, O. C. Stine and H.N. Williams (2013) Succession of Bacteriovorax Operational Taxonomic Units along Salinity Gradient in the Chesapeake Bay Reveals Distinct Estuarine Strains, Microbial Ecology 65(3): 6502-660. doi: 10.1007/s00248-013-0186-3.
- D.S. Lymperopoulou, K.A. Kormas and A.D. Karagouni (2012) Inter-annual variability of prokaryotic communities in a drinking water reservoir (Marathonas, Greece), Microbes and Environments 27: 1-8.
- D.S. Lymperopoulou, K.A. Kormas, M. Moustaka-Gouni and A.D. Karagouni (2011) Diversity of cyanobacterial phylotypes in a Mediterranean drinking water reservoir (Marathonas, Greece), Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 173: 155-165.
- C. Meintanis, K.I. Chalkou, K.A. Kormas, D. S. Lymperopoulou, E.A. Katsifas, D. Hatzinikolaou and A.D. Karagouni (2008) Application of rpoB sequence similarity analysis, REP-PCR and BOX-PCR for the differentiation of species within the genus Geobacillus, Letters in Applied Microbiology, 46: 395-401.
- Meintanis C., Chalkou K.I., Kormas K.A., Lymperopoulou D.S., Katsifas E.A., Karagouni A.D. (2009) The use of trpB gene in resolving phylogenetic diversity within the group of Streptomyces. Current Trends in Microbiology 5: 37-46.
- P.G. Tennis, D.S. Lymperopoulou, F.C. Dobbs. Potential for biocontrol of environmental Vibrio spp. by predatory bacteria, Bacteriovorax. PeerJ (under review).
- 2005-2008 PENED No 03 ΕD 203 (Research & Technology Institute, E.U.)
- 2005 The Federation of European Microbiological Societies (FEMS)
- 2004 The ‘‘Onassis Foundation’’, Athens, Greece

RESEARCH INTERESTS
My research integrates Ecology and Microbiology with Metagenomics and Phylogenetics (Ecogenomics – Environmental Genomics). I am interested in the patterns and processes that underpin the distribution and abundance of microorganisms in a variety of habitats at the taxonomic and functional level; in plants (Plant-Microbe interactions), in the Built Environment (BE), and in a wide range of aquatic habitats such as oceanic and coastal waters, estuaries, lakes and reservoirs. I seek to understand how microbial diversity emerges, the importance of diversity for ecosystem function, and the relationship between taxonomic and functional diversity.
EDUCATION
ACADEMIC APPOINTMENTS
I have taught the 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing workshop of CGRL (Computational Genomics Resource Laboratory – QB3, UC Berkeley). Here’s the webpage https://cgrlucb.wikispaces.com/Spring%C2%A02016+Workshops (Fall 2015, Spring 2016) – email me with questions or requests for the workshop’s materials.