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Dr Steffen Docken
Research Fellow

Dr Steffen Docken

PhD, MSc, MSc, BA

Medicine & Health
The Kirby Institute

I am a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Infection Analytics Program at the Kirby Institute, UNSW, and my research centres around increasing our understanding of the mechanisms underlying diseases. Currently, I primarily work on using mathematical modelling to further our understanding of the mechanisms involved in HIV's reactivation from treatment induced latency and study how variation in the viral replication cycle affects disease progression. I received his Ph.D. in applied mathematics from the University of California, Davis in 2018, where my dissertation research focused on studying the effects of anti-arrhythmic drugs on electrical signalling in the heart.

In my research, I frequently implement mathematical techniques from probability theory, dynamical systems theory, and singular perturbation analysis.
E-mail
sdocken@kirby.unsw.edu.au

I am broadly interested in utilising mathematical modelling to further our understanding of disease states and aid in the development of new therapies.  Currently, I am focusing on discerning the mechanisms driving viral production rates early in HIV infection as well as studying the interaction between the immune system and viral evolution.  During my PhD studies, I modelled the effects of drugs on electrical signalling in the heart, working to better understand the drug characteristics that differentiate between drugs that have a pro- or anti-arrhythmic effect when administered to patients.