Dr. Leonidas Karagounis, BSc(Hons), PhD – Nutrition Advisor

Dr Leonidas Karagounis became involved in javelin throwing at the age of 17. This in turn sparked his interest in the regulation of skeletal muscle metabolism. Following his move to the UK from Greece, he completed a Diploma in Sports Science which furthered his interest in Nutrition and Metabolism. He then completed a BSc (Hons) degree at the University of Nottingham in Nutritional Biochemistry which gave him an insight in the molecular regulation of nutrient-gene interactions. Following his degree, he completed his PhD in the Muscle Metabolism laboratory, at The University of Nottingham Medical School. His PhD focussed on elucidating the molecular regulation of skeletal muscle mass in response to amino acids and insulin. Specifically, he investigated the short and long-term effect of carbohydrate and protein ingestion with or without creatine on muscle mass and strength and how this was regulated at the molecular level.

Upon completion of his PhD in 2008, he was offered a research position in the Laboratory of at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) in Melbourne, Australia, where he was involved in a project investigating resistance exercise induced inflammation in skeletal muscle. His current research, investigates novel training methods and nutrient ingestion methods to promote muscle adaptations and improve performance, as well as using such approaches to reverse insulin resistance in Type II diabetes.

Since completing his PhD, he has co-authored several peer reviewed publications in the field of Molecular Nutrition, Exercise-protein/carbohydrate interactions, Muscle Mass Regulation, Insulin and Metabolism as well as individual book chapters on the subjects of Cellular Bioenergetics and Exercise and Glucose Metabolism. He is a reviewer for several peer-reviewed journals and national granting bodies.