Master of Science/in Engineering Project in Modelling and Simulation (Stipend)

Modelling Cytokine Dynamics through Simulation

Give us a chance to meet you
  • About us:

Sano Centre for Computational Medicine is a new International Scientific Foundation located in Kraków, Poland.

Sano aspires to be a major translational scientific institute, operating at the meeting point of academic science, established MedTech industry, and emerging start-up environment, combining the best of these three perspectives.

Sano acts as a core technology and expertise provider for industry, and creator of innovation, developing state-of-the-art solutions for healthcare. Thanks to the substantial funding and excellent European partnership network, Sano will bring a critical mass to this transformational field of research, in order to translate scientific advancements onto clinical practice. Sano’s ambition is to become the Reference Centre for Computational Medicine in Central Europe and build a reputation as a leading institute on a global level.

As a cross-disciplinary institution, Sano uses machine learning/artificial intelligence (ML/AI), large scale computer simulations (HPC), data science, and other computational technologies towards overcoming global challenges in healthcare systems. The research agenda will be executed in close collaboration with Partners in Poland, EU and USA.

We value:

  • Passion – Passion in what we do, engagement in Sano operations, taking responsibility, providing initiative, being happy at work.
  • Innovation – Boldness in articulating and pursuing novel ideas, courage to think outside the box.
  • Integrity – Directness, openness, tolerance and respect. Scientific integrity (we do not cut corners).
  • Diversity – Diversity in backgrounds, cultures and opinions of Sano employees. Promotion of women in STEM.
  • About job:
  • Location: Kraków
  • Employment type: part-time of approximately 16 working hours per week/40% FTE
  • Salary: up to 2500 PLN gross
  • Period of contract: 1 year
  • Scientific discipline: Physics, Mathematics, Chemistry, Computer Science, Computational Medicine, Data Science, Machine Learning, Complexity
  • Institution: Sano Centre for Computational Personalised Medicine – International Research Foundation, Krakow, Poland
  • Supervisor: Zbigniew R. Struzik
  • Position starts on: Expected start in mid/late 2022 (negotiable, depends on Candidate’s curriculum at the host Academic Institution)

We are looking for passionate, motivated graduate candidates willing to set a foot at the frontier of computational science for medicine— your research will help to propel development of new healthcare solutions, methods and paradigms. We are a rapidly expanding Team within a new not-for-profit research Institute, dedicated to the advancement of computational physiology and medicine. We aim at developing fundamental and applied approaches and solutions for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases. If you i) are a person who is interested in cutting-edge research in computational medicine; ii) are passionate about the use of computing paradigms in medicine; iii) want to actively and profoundly influence the future of healthcare through engagement in exciting and impactful projects; please contact us and talk to us in order to find out more about this opportunity.

  • About the Stipend

Your project will entail modelling cytokine dynamics through simulation, with possible elements of cytokine data analysis.

Immune system is arguably the most complex and least understood system in human body. The average human is composed of 10^13 cells. Homeostatic regulation of the human organism requires that effective intercellular communication be maintained between these vast numbers of cells throughout lifetime. Three forms of cell-to-cell communication (reception, transduction, and response) have evolved to maintain homeostasis, and defects in these systems are the basis of much, if not most, diseases. Neuronal communication was first discovered in the eighteenth century. The system of endocrine hormones was discovered at the beginning of the twentieth century. During the last thirty years, a third system of cell communication has been discovered, which may be the most complex to have evolved. This communication system utilises a very large range of proteins which have been named cytokines. These proteins, of which there are probably several hundred, are produced by all mammalian cells and function by binding to very high affnity receptors on target cells. Homeostatic control of basal cytokine activity in the human immune system is not well understood. So, for example, it is not known if discrete, different cell types or lineages exist to produce pro-inflammatory cytokines and anti-inflammatory cytokines independent of one another or whether release of one of these types of cytokines activates release of the other type of cytokine.

Your work will aim at elucidating the dynamic properties of the cytokine communication network in both healthy people and patients with fibromyalgia (FM) – a debilitating, medically unexplained chronic illness. You will use data driven models and a formal model to describe the dynamics.

You will join the Team dedicated to the discovery of mechanisms, methods and paradigms for the development of computational methods pertaining to making biophysical complexity tractable.

By doing your Master of Science/in Engineering project you will contribute to turning scientific vision into tangible solutions for clinicians and patients.

You will either engage in fundamental theoretical research with a clear applied facet — or you may prefer to draw from theory in developing methods.

Output of your high-quality research will be disseminated at A grade conferences and published in peer-reviewed journals.

If you: i) enjoy learning; ii) enjoy science; iii) want to do something meaningful in life, then you are the kind of person we would like to talk to.

  • What are you going to do?

You are expected to:

  • conduct original, frontier scientific research, under the supervision of Dr Zbigniew R. Struzik, the Team Leader, and the (co-)supervisor at your Academic Institution;
  • participate in internal seminars and workshops at our Institute;
  • follow an individual plan of scientific development;collaborate with students, researchers and other employees of the Institute;
  • complete your Master of Science/in Engineering Thesis.
  • What do we require ?

As our successful candidate you should have:

  • undergraduate degree – BSc, BEng, preferably in Physics, Mathematics, or Computer science;
  • interest in pursuing theoretical and/or applied computational research in the fields of computational physiology and medicine in a multi-disciplinary environment;
  • excellent knowledge of computational methods;
  • ability to think creatively and critically;
  • excellent written and oral English communication skills — the main language of the Team is English — no knowledge of other languages is required.
  • Our Offer

We offer a stipend contract for the duration of 2022/2023 academic year, and expect the student to work on the project for approx. 16 hours per week (40% FTE). This includes attendance of courses, trainings and internal research meetings. The research will be conducted in close collaboration with the Team Leader, Dr Zbigniew R. Struzik.

You will receive a stipend of up to 2500 PLN gross monthly for the duration of the contract. Our Institute offers excellent opportunities for study and development, participation in Polish and international projects, meetings, workshops and conferences in computational biomedicine — a possibility to grow in the scientific society.

If you feel that this job opportunity is the career that you are looking for, please apply immediately and give Sano a chance to meet you. Please, be informed that Sano will contact only with Candidates fulfilling the formal criteria.

  • Job application

Sano is an equal-opportunity employer. We prioritize diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for everyone. We value a spirit of enquiry and perseverance, provide the space to keep asking questions, and promote a culture of curiosity and creativity.

Do you recognize yourself in the job profile? Then we look forward to receiving your application.

Applications in .pdf should include:

  • a curriculum vitae;
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