In this newsletter:
Registrations for the Centre Retreat close this week
We’d love for you to join us for the MACSYS Centre Launch and Retreat! Both events will celebrate who we are and our work so far.
This is our final reminder for you to register your attendance for the Centre Retreat at RACV Cape Schanck Resort. The deadline is this Friday, 22 August. Spaces are quickly filling up so register your attendance now make sure you don’t miss out!
*Note: This is an internal registration form, so please don’t circulate it outside of MACSYS. There will be separate invitation for invited guests to the Centre Launch.
ECR/Student Workshop
Monday & Tuesday, 27-28 October
The University of Melbourne, Parkville Campus
Details coming soon!
Centre Launch
Tuesday, 28 October
The University of Melbourne, Parkville Campus
Centre Retreat
Wednesday, 29 October - Friday, 31 October
RACV Cape Schanck Resort, Victoria
All Centre Members are invited and strongly encouraged to attend both events!
MACSYS Nodes have travel budgets to pay for you to attend. Discuss this with your node leader.
The accommodation will be paid for by MACSYS Central and meals will be provided at the event.
Need help getting to the Retreat? MACSYS is pleased to offer support through the Carers Support Scheme to help members attend the retreat. If this support would make it easier for you to join us, please reach out. There are diverse ways we can provide support, including bringing your partner or other support. We are open to other creative approaches to help you. If you’re unsure whether the scheme could support your situation, please ask Ben Hess or Veronica Lay, your node leader, or anyone on the EPCC Committee.
MACSYS Visit by Dr Chris Rackauckas (Julia Lab)
Dr Chris Rackauckas will visit three MACSYS Nodes in September:
23-24 September – The University of Melbourne
25-26 September – UNSW
29-30 September - QUT
Stay tuned for more details about each stop.
About Dr Chris Rackauckas:
Research Affiliate and Co-PI of the Julia Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Director of Modeling and Simulation at Julia Computing and Creator
Lead Developer of JuliaSim
Director of Scientific Research at Pumas-AI and Creator
Lead Developer of Pumas
Lead Developer of the SciML Open Source Software Organization
UNSW Workshop for people involved with the mathematical modelling of nutrient transport, membranes and metabolism
UNSW - 9-10 October
The workshop will have a lot of hands-on mathematical modelling in order to explore synergies and further develop collaborations between the groups working in this area.
ML/AI Research Interest Group
We’re thrilled to announce the upcoming Work-in-Progress (WIP) meetings hosted by the #mlai-research-group! These meetings are designed to foster collaboration, spark innovative discussions, and share ongoing research within our community.
To make these meetings as accessible and productive as possible, we need your input on scheduling. Please take a moment to complete this brief survey to share your availability and preferences: COMPLETE THE SURVEY
The survey will take less than a minute to complete, and your feedback will help us select optimal time slots and tailor the format to suit your needs. Kindly submit your responses by Friday, August 29, 2025.
If you have any questions, ideas, or suggestions, feel free to reach out to the organizing team via the #mlai-research-group channel on MACSYS Slack.
WCM Review Reading Group
Next meeting: Friday, 29 August at 2 pm AEST
Speakers: MD Abul Bashar & Trung Tin Nguyen (QUT)
How to build the virtual cell with artificial intelligence: Priorities and opportunities
Prof Marc Wilkins at Macquarie University event for the 30th anniversary of the Australian Proteome Analysis Facility
Proteomics Pioneer Returns to Celebrate a Scientific Milestone
In 1994, MACSYS Chief Investigator Marc Wilkins coined the term proteome as a PhD student at Macquarie University - sparking a whole new way of understanding molecular biology. Marc recently returned to Macquarie as a featured guest at the 30th anniversary of the Australian Proteome Analysis Facility, one of the first of its kind in the world. In this MACSYS news story, Marc reflects on the early days of proteomics, its evolution into a global field, and how MACSYS is now using mathematical analysis to deepen our understanding of how proteins and cells interact. Read full story
Welcome to MACSYS to the following new members:
The University of Melbourne
Alex Browning - Associate Investigator
Patricia Menendez - Associate Investigator
Monash University
Paul Harrison - Associate Investigator
UNSW
Michael Pan - Research Fellow (moves over from Melbourne)
PhD Scholarships
Help spread the word about these scholarship opportunities!
Highly stable bacteriophages PIN1 and PIN2 have hallmarks of flagellotropic phages but infect immotile bacteria - NPJ Viruses - Trevor Lithgow et al
Left ventricular myocardial molecular profile of human diabetic ischaemic cardiomyopathy - EMBO Molecular Medicine - Michael Pan, Vijay Rajagopal, et al
Please let us know if you have any publications you’d like others to know about. Contact Tim Macuga ([email protected]) when the paper is accepted and before it’s published.
MACSYS Funding Support
The MACSYS funding support pages are now live on the MACSYS SharePoint. These funding schemes are designed to assist researchers and students working on projects aligned with MACSYS Research Themes. Whether you are seeking instrument time at a core facility, organising a collaborative event, or undertaking a new research project, these funding streams are here to help.
The available schemes include:
Strategic Initiatives Fund – Supports activities such as wet lab data generation, research breakthroughs, extended travel and collaborative visits, short-term staffing, industry linkage, and related activities.
Bioplatforms Australia: Research Consumables & Analytical Instrumentation Support Fund – Covers costs for technical staff, wet-lab consumables, sample preparation, and instrument time on NCRIS and institutional facilities.
Event Sponsorship Scheme – Provides funding for conferences, workshops, research retreats, and similar events.
NCI Resources – Offers compute and storage resources, as well as online courses and training support.
Further details about each fund, along with a FAQ, are available on the SharePoint page. We encourage all members to explore these opportunities and make the most of the support available!
Carers Support Scheme
The MACSYS Carers Support Scheme is designed to offer aid and support to MACSYS members who have carer responsibilities. The page includes both the carer support fund application form, as well as the carer support scheme guidelines.
ARC Centre of Excellence Pride Network
The ARC Centre of Excellence Pride Network aims to support the LGBTIQA+ community working in research and higher education by providing a forum for conversation and networking that enables community-building and collaboration. This will be a space for discussing highlights and challenges, sharing advice and resources, and planning projects. If you are interested, join the conversation on the Network’s slack channel. To join the channel, contact Veronica Lay ([email protected]).
