Title: Assistant Professor
Company: Texas Tech University
Location: Lubbock, Texas, United States
Elka R. Georgieva, PhD, Assistant Professor at Texas Tech University, has been recognized by Marquis Who’s Who Top Scientists for dedication, achievements, and leadership in biomedical sciences.
Cultivating her passion for science at a young age, Dr. Georgieva was influenced greatly by her family’s background in scientific endeavors. She was subsequently enrolled by her father in a specialized school for gifted children, where she exhibited her aptitude in advanced science and mathematics. Dr. Georgieva eventually shifted her attention to biochemistry, having been inspired by her aunts who were prominent scientists in their native country of Bulgaria.
Dr. Georgieva initially pursued a formal education at Sofia University in St. Kliment Ohridski, Bulgaria, from which she earned a Master of Science in chemistry and physics in 2001. She subsequently refined her skills in the field with a graduate student fellowship in electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy at the University of Florence, Italy in 2003 and at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research in Mainz, Germany in 2004. In 2005, Dr. Georgieva concluded her academic efforts with a Doctor of Philosophy in chemical kinetics using EPR spectroscopy from the Institute of Catalysis at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.
Dr. Georgieva began her career as a teacher in chemistry and physics at an economics school in Kyustendil, Bulgaria from 2000 to 2001. She subsequently worked as a postdoctoral visiting scientist with Prof. Astrid Graslund at Stockholm University from 2006 to 2007 and as a postdoctoral associate with Prof. Jack H. Freed at Cornell University from 2007 to 2010. She later advanced to become both a research associate and a senior research associate at Cornell University between 2010 and 2016. During this time, Dr. Georgieva was invited as a visiting scientist in the EU Program at Sofia University in 2013.
From 2016 to 2018, Dr. Georgieva served as an instructor in physiology and biophysics at Weill Cornell Medicine. Soon thereafter, she was active as a senior research associate and a principal investigator at Cornell University between 2018 and 2020. Since 2020, she has excelled as an assistant professor at Texas Tech University, furthering her research into molecular mechanisms of HIV-1, the Hepatitis C virus, and drug exporters of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Likewise, Dr. Georgieva has found success as an adjunct assistant professor of cell physiology and molecular biophysics at the Texas Tech University Health Science Center since 2021.
Renowned for her expertise in molecular virology and membrane protein research, Dr. Georgieva has established herself in her field through her published work, which includes more than 20 highly cited papers featured in esteemed journals including Nanotechnology Reviews, Frontiers in Physiology, Scientific Reports, Nature Structural & Molecular Biology, and the Journal of Magnetic Resonance, among others. She was also appointed as an editorial board member for Scientific Reports and Nature Portfolio in 2023. Furthermore, Dr. Georgieva was recruited as a deputy editorial member for the Journal of Structural Biology.
As a testament to her stellar endeavors, Dr. Georgieva has been celebrated on numerous occasions, including a Gold Medal from the National Science Competition in Bulgaria, a Research Grant Award from the Royal Society of Chemistry, and the Gilead Research Scholar Award for HIV-1 Research from Gilead Sciences in 2023, having been only one of four individuals in the United States to receive the latter. Her studies and research were notably supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health, a graduate student fellowship from the Marie Curie Foundation, a graduate student fellowship from the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research, and a postdoctoral fellowship from the Carl Trygger Foundation. Dr. Georgieva was additionally recognized with a Young Investigator Travel Grant from The Protein Society in 2010.
Outside of her primary responsibilities, Dr. Georgieva finds much satisfaction in mentoring the next generation of scientific leaders and fostering a supportive environment for biomedical researchers at Texas Tech University. Among her most memorable achievements, she is incredibly proud of her research on alpha-synuclein and tau proteins, which are closely linked to Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease, as well as her status among the first scientists to publish an extended helix confirmation of the alpha-synuclein on the surface of the membrane. She is also deeply committed to her family, aspiring to encourage her daughter’s curiosity and intellectual growth. Looking toward the future, Dr. Georgieva hopes to continue advancing her research to new heights in order to produce scientific scientific results that benefit society.
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