Title: From Molecules to System: Bounding Knee Mechanotransduction to Design Future-Proof ACL Rehab & Performance Training

This session translates mechanobiology into a practical load-bounding framework for ACL rehab and performance: how to dose strength training, plyometrics, and deceleration work to stay in the adaptive zone — and avoid both under-loading and overload-driven inflammation or degeneration.

You’ll learn how different knee tissues (cartilage, synovium, ligaments, and tendons) respond to specific loading types such as compression, tension, and shear, and why “the same exercise” can create very different biological outcomes depending on how it is programmed.

Finally, the session connects these tissue-level responses to the key cellular mechanisms behind adaptation, providing clinicians with a clearer scientific rationale for building more robust, future-proof ACL rehab and performance programs.

Mikolaj Stańczak leads technology strategy and the ML/AI roadmap, developing multimodal data pipelines (wearables, biomarkers, imaging, PROs) and in-silico modelling workflows for risk stratification and drug discovery. He is scientifically active in musculoskeletal mechanobiology, mechanotransduction, and post-injury neuroplasticity, and serves as a Guest Editor for Cellular Physiology and Biochemistry.

He also brings hands-on experience in professional sport environments, coordinating injury prevention and rehabilitation with the Austrian National Volleyball Federation and Polish I Liga football and volleyball, while developing ML models for ACL injury risk prediction and teaching return-to-sport strategies.

Jakub Surmacz, MSc is a Poland-based sports physiotherapist, movement therapist, and certified strength & conditioning coach who leads Rehab Performance in Lublin. He specializes in active rehabilitation and performance development, combining evidence-based physiotherapy with functional movement diagnostics and strength training for individuals recovering from injuries such as ACL reconstructions and orthopedic dysfunctions. Jakub also produces professional educational content and actively engages in knowledge dissemination via workshops and social media.