Dr. Kyriaki Neophytou

Social Sciences

Dr. Kyriaki Neophytou is Assistant Professor of Psychology and Department Director at UNIC Athens. She is a cognitive neuroscientist whose research examines the neural basis of language and cognitive functioning, particularly in people with aphasia (post-stroke and primary progressive aphasia), frontotemporal dementia, and related neurological conditions.

Dr. Neophytou holds a PhD and MA in Cognitive Science from Johns Hopkins University (USA), an MA in Linguistics from Utrecht University (Netherlands), and a BA in English Language and Literature from the University of Cyprus. She also completed postdoctoral research in the Department of Neurology at Johns Hopkins Medicine (USA), at the Language Neuromodulation Lab.

Her research focuses on language production, spelling, verbal fluency, executive function, and the contribution of bilateral brain networks to language and cognition. She has particular expertise in studying brain-behaviour relationships through neuropsychological assessment, structural neuroimaging, EEG, and non-invasive brain stimulation techniques, specifically transcranial direct and alternating current stimulation (tDCS and tACS).

Dr. Neophytou has developed active collaborations with leading international institutions, including Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in the United States, McGill University and the Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI) in Canada, and New York University (NYU) Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. Her work has been published in top-tier peer-reviewed journals including Cerebral Cortex, Neuropsychologia, Neurobiology of Aging, Brain and Language, and NeuroImage.

A major current area of her work concerns the development of personalised neuromodulation approaches for neurodegenerative language disorders. She is leading a pilot project that establishes the first research protocol in Greece to investigate transcranial alternating current stimulation, combined with computerized cognitive training, in Greek-speaking individuals with primary progressive aphasia. It also incorporates other indices (such as plasma biomarkers) to explore why individuals may respond differently to treatment, with the longer-term aim of supporting more tailored interventions.

Dr. Neophytou serves as a reviewer for journals in cognitive neuroscience, neuropsychology, aphasiology, speech and language sciences, and dementia research. She is a member of the Communications Committee of the International Society for Frontotemporal Dementias (ISFTD) and has served as guest editor for special issues on artificial intelligence, speech, language, communication, and precision measurements.

ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1213-7640

Personal website: https://kyriakineophytou.wordpress.com/

Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=miyTmwoAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao