Biography of Dr Panayiotis Patrikios

Dr Patrikios is a neurologist and research neuropathologist in the field of Multiple Sclerosis (MS). He is the inaugural Director of the Multiple Sclerosis Brain Bank which is based at the University of Sydney. The brain bank is an initiative of MS Research Australia and the University of Sydney.

Dr Patrikios is from Gympie, Queensland, Australia. His family had a take-away/café there and he grew up working in the family business. His ancestors were from Kythera, Greece. The Patrikios family hails from Logothetianika with other family connections coming from Christoforianikia, Perlegkianika, and Mitata.

He studied medicine at the University of Queensland. He undertook his internship and specialty training at Royal Brisbane Hospital.. His advanced training in neurology was undertaken at Royal Hobart Hospital in Tasmania, and then Royal Prince Alfred and Concord Repatriation General Hospitals in Sydney. He is a fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians.

He completed a Doctorate of Medical Science at the Medical University of Vienna, Austria. This was in the field of MS neuropathology and was performed under the supervision of Prof Dr Hans Lassmann, a renowned expert in this field. On return to Australia he was appointed as the inaugural Director of the MS Brain Bank, officially commencing this role in January 2007.

The aim of the bank is to acquire human brain tissue as well as other specific body tissues and fluids upon which to conduct medical research. People with MS will be asked to register with the bank and when they die the tissues will be collected at autopsy. The research will be primarily aimed at finding the cause of Multiple Sclerosis but also to answer many other questions about the disease and to hopefully find the cure for this disease. The bank will hopefully acquire tissue from many sites within Australia and also New Zealand and elsewhere.

Dr Patrikios' qualifications are MBBS(Qld), FRACP and DMedSci(Vienna).