Career

I am currenly working as a principal data scientist at Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma, where I develop new analysis strategies for drug discovery.

Highlights:

  • Experienced ML data scientist / engineer, responsible for the (co-)development of several biomedical machine learning platforms and (gen)omics pipelines (in Python, R, Bash, JS).
  • Strong project leader and collaborator: headed several multi-disciplinary scientific and software dev teams, resulting in the realisation of project goals and continued funding.
  • Effective communicator, as demonstrated by 8 publications in peer-reviewed scientific journals (of which 5 as first author, mean impact factor 12.1), being selected as first reviewer of the bestseller The 100 Page Machine Learning Book, and a Forbes co-authorship on an AI article.

Details can be found in my resume below:

Projects

  • Developed and deployed an AutoML machine learning platform for biomarker discovery called ScaiVision.
  • Developed the cleanse package, which allows usage of a simplified syntax to work with one of the most widely used genomics data formats.
  • Created an automated image analysis pipeline in CellProfiler (chapter 2 of thesis)
  • Developed an NLP-based deep learning framework to predict protein features (unpublished)
  • Built an interactive user interface in shiny to visualize multiplex experiments (link)

Thesis

My thesis on microenvironmental signalling in chronic lymphocytic leukemia can be found below:

Forbes publications

  • Software Ate The World, Now AI Is Eating Software (link)

Scientific publications

  • Malchers F, Nogova L, van Attekum MHA, ... , Thomas RK Somatic rearrangements causing oncogenic ectodomain deletions of FGFR1 in squamous cell lung cancer. JCI. 2023; 133(21):e170217 Pubmed - Journal - Full text
  • Pascutti MF, Jak M, Tromp JM, Derks IA, Remmerswaal EB, Thijssen R, van Attekum MHA, van Bochove GG, Luijks DM, Pals ST, van Lier RA, Kater AP, van Oers MH, Eldering E. IL-21 and CD40L signals from autologous T cells can induce antigen-independent proliferation of CLL cells. Blood. 2013 Oct 24;122(17):3010-9. Pubmed - Journal - Full text
  • van Attekum MHA, Terpstra S, Reinen E, Kater AP, Eldering E. Macrophage-mediated chronic lymphocytic leukemia cell survival is independent of APRIL signaling. Cell Death Discovery. 2016;2:16020. Pubmed - Journal - Full text
  • van Attekum MHA, Terpstra S, Slinger E, von Lindern M, Kater AP, Eldering E. Macrophages confer survival signals via CCR1-dependent translational MCL-1 induction in chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Oncogene. 2017 Jun 29;36(26):3651-3660 Pubmed - Journal - Full text
  • van Attekum MHA, Eldering E, Kater AP. Chronic lymphocytic leukemia cells are active participants in microenvironmental cross-talk. Haematologica. 2017 Sep;102(9):1469-1476 Pubmed - Journal - Full text
  • van Attekum MHA, Lebre MC, Eldering E, Kater AP. CD40 signaling instructs CLL cells to attract monocytes via the CCR2 axis. Haematologica. 2017 Dec;102(12):2069-2076 Pubmed - Journal - Full text
  • van Attekum MHA, Kater AP, Eldering E. The APRIL paradox in normal versus malignant B cell biology. Cell Death Dis. 2016 Jun 23;7(6):e2276. Pubmed - Journal - Full text
  • Wensveen F, Slinger S, van Attekum MHA, Brink R, Eldering E. Antigen-affinity controls pre-germinal center B cell selection by promoting Mcl-1 induction through BAFF receptor signaling. Sci Rep. 2016 Oct 20;6:35673. Pubmed - Journal - Full text

Press publications

  • For the Amsterdam B cell malignancies consortium: Wetenschapper in de spotlights (link)
  • For the Amsterdam B cell malignancies consortium: Een publicatie toegelicht (link)