Nine doctoral students from the Brno University of Technology scored in the competition Brno Ph.D. Talent that evaluates young scientists. Most representatives, exactly five, were from the scientific centre CEITEC BUT. The competition Brno Ph.D. Talent is regularly organized by JCMM, or the City of Brno, which gives the awarded scientists the opportunity to receive a financial bonus for their studies for three years so that young specialists could fully devote themselves to their research. In February, the students will receive a cheque directly from the Mayor's hands at the awards ceremony at the Brno City Hall.

The committee was convinced of the potential of the research of new methods for effective description of regulatory mechanisms of non-model organisms by Jana Musilova from FEEC, who focuses on biomedical engineering. In her project, Jana focuses on the genome description of non-model organisms. Non-model organisms are organisms that until recently have been somewhat out of the interest of the scientific community because their properties (e.g. long reproductive time, inability to reproduce in the laboratory, etc.) made their in-depth examination impossible, or such research was too difficult or expensive. However, these organisms can significantly accelerate the biotechnology industry. Jana's designed experiments using computer models instead of laboratory research significantly reduce the cost and time consumption of the experiments.

Martina Kratochvilova from FCE received a scholarship for her work Robotic Fabrication of Complex Free-form Concrete Structures, in which she explores the possibilities of robotic production of complex concrete structures. Its task is to optimize the design of new building fillings. These spatial materials make it possible to withstand the high loads at low weight. These days, Martina works at the Institute of Computer Aided Engineering and Computer Science – FCE. Miroslav Rebej from the Department of Process Engineering, the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, was also successful, whose task is to create a model of photobioreactor. The research will be carried out on the cultivation of algae suitable for cleaning flue gases from energy processes. In order to create the prototype faster, the department employees also used 3D printing, which enables a real application of the designed components within hours.

Zuzana Sedrlova from FCH addressed the evaluation committee and succeeded in the competition between 114 first year doctoral students of Brno universities with her work focused on the accumulation of polyhydroxyalkanoates and other cyanobacterial metabolites. Cyanobacteria produce a biopolymer that has similar properties to plastic made from petroleum, but is more environmentally friendly because it decomposes within months. This material could thus replace conventional plastics. Zuzana's task is to find a way to reduce the production costs of this biopolymer. These days, she works at the Institute of Food Chemistry and Biotechnology and at the Materials Research Centre.

Five PhD students work and do research at CEITEC BUT. Kristyna Bukvisova is one of the winners, who focuses on new systems that will allow nanostructures to grow in the field of electron microscopy. She works in the team Preparation and characterization of nanostructures led by Tomas Sikola. Katarina Kacvinska focuses on the development of new medical materials that will cover wounds, such as burns. They contain not only an antibacterial component, but also accelerate healing. These cover materials are based on natural biopolymers. Katarina works with Lucy Vojtova's team Advanced Biomaterials (in the picture). Alzbeta Ressnerova focuses on smart nanomachines for a change, specifically the plans to use the so-called CRISPRbots for the accurate gene modification. The significant research group is led by Jaromir Hubalek. Another awarded doctoral student from CEITEC BUT is Jan Zitka, who develops the Point-of-Care diagnostic system. This could soon be an integral part of general practitioners' surgeries. Jorge Andres Navarro-Giraldo, who works in a group focused on Magneto-optical and THz spectroscopy, will also receive awards for the research from the Mayor. In his work he focuses on magnetic asymmetry in graphene, double-layer graphene or graphite. The competition Brno Ph.D. Talent is intended for the first year outstanding students of doctoral programmes of Brno universities, who can thus obtain a total scholarship of 300,000 CZK for their research. Congratulations to all winners.