My research journey
EMPLOYMENT
March 2025 – present: Postdoctoral Researcher
University of Calgary, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Jocelyn Poissant’s lab
June 2024 – present: Research and Teaching Assistant
Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Institute of Animal Sciences, Department of Animal Genetics and Conservation, Warsaw, Poland
DEGREES
October 2020 – February 2025: PhD, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Institute of Animal Science, Department of Animal Genetics and Conservation, Warsaw, Poland
Dissertation: Population Structure and the Assessment of the Conformation and Movement of the Purebred Arabian Horses (Supervisors: Prof. Elżbieta Martyniuk, Dr. Wioleta Drobik)
March 2019 – July 2020: MSc (with distinction), Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Department of Animal Breeding, Bioengineering and Conservation, Warsaw, Poland
Thesis: Factors influencing racing performance in Polish Thoroughbreds and Purebred Arabian Horses (Supervisor: Prof. Elżbieta Martyniuk)
October 2015 – February 2019: Engineer (Eng/BSc), Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Department of Animal Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
Thesis: Analysis of the economic efficiency of Michałów State Stud between 2008-2016 (Supervisor: Dr. Marek Balcerak)
non-degree training
September 2023 – February 2024: Visiting Researcher, Brooks Equine Genetics Lab, Department of Animal Sciences, Genetics Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA (supervisor: Prof. Samantha A. Brooks).
November – December 2022: NAWA PROM PhD Candidate fellow, Centre for Anthropobiology and Genomics of Toulouse, Paul Sabatier University Toulouse III, Toulouse, France (supervisor: Prof. Ludovic Orlando)
March – April 2022: Visiting Researcher, Genomics Lab, Department of Animal Molecular Biology, National Research Institute of Animal Production, Kraków-Balice, Poland (supervisor: Dr. Monika Stefaniuk-Szmukier)
January – June 2022: 500 Innovators/Fulbright Poland TopMinds training & mentoring program mentee, Warsaw, Poland (mentor: Dr. Maria Górna)
publications
7. Gmel A., Lamas L.P., Rosa T.V., Stefaniuk-Szmukier M., Klecel W., Martin-Gimenez T., Cruz A.M., Weishaupt Michael A., Neuditschko M. (2024): Shape and joint angle data for seven European horse breeds and their repeatability. Data in Brief, 56, 110799.
6. Gmel A., Haraldsdóttir E.H., Serra-Bragança F., Lamas L.P., Rosa T.V., Stefaniuk-Szmukier M., Klecel W., Neuditschko M., Weishaupt M.A. (2024): Inertial sensor data of horses from four breeds at walk and trot in hand on a straight line. Data in Brief 55 (1), 110764
5. Klecel W., Kloch M., Wojciechowska M., Gajewska M., Martyniuk E. (2024). Population structure and genetic diversity of Polish Arabian horses based on pedigree data. animal 18 (5), 101148
4. Klecel W., Drobik-Czwarno W., Martyniuk E. (2023). Judging the Arabian beauty: what are the relationships between scores in different categories? Journal of Equine Veterinary Science 123, 104247
3. Myćka G., Klecel W., Stefaniuk-Szmukier M., Jaworska J., Musiał A.D., Ropka-Molik K. (2022). Mitochondrial whole d-loop variability in Polish Draft Horses. Animals, 12(15), 1870
2. Klecel, W, Martyniuk, E. (2021). From the Eurasian steppes to the Roman circuses: A review of early development of horse breeding and management. Animals, 11(7), 1859
1.Klecel W., Drobik-Czwarno W., Martyniuk E. (2021). Factors influencing racing performance in Polish Thoroughbreds and Purebred Arabian horses. Journal of Equine Veterinary Science, 100, 103499
Conferences
7. Klecel W., Avidakolanu S., Garland A., Granum M., Shirey J., Williams J., Brooks S.A. Precision phenotyping system for conformation and locomotion traits in various livestock species. 87th Symposium of Polish Society of Animal Production. September 11th-13th 2024, Siedlce, Poland. Oral presentation (awarded).
6. Klecel W., Shirey J., Brooks S.A. Employing Deep Neural Networks for precision phenotyping of selected kinematic traits in Arabian horses: a pilot study on heritability and the effect of inbreeding. 14th International Havemeyer Foundation Horse Genome Workshop, May 12th-15th2024, Caen, France. Oral presentation.
5. Klecel W., Brooks S.A. Phenotypic Correlations between Selected Kinematic Traits in Arabian Horses: Preliminary Results and Possible Genetic Background. 31st Plant and Animal Genome Conference (PAG 31), January 12th-17th 2024, San Diego, CA, USA. Poster presentation.
4. Klecel W., Brooks S.A. Utilizing Deep Neural Networks to Assess the Quality of Movement in the Arabian Horse. 9th UF/IFAS Animal Sciences Graduate Student Symposium, October 12th-13th 2023, St. Augustine, FL, USA. Poster presentation..
3. Klecel W., Drobik-Czwarno W., Martyniuk E. Relationship between elements of the scoring system in the Arabian horse show. LXXXVI Congress of Polish Society for Animal Production, September 28th-30th 2022, Cracow Agricultural University, Cracow, Poland. Oral presentation.
2. Klecel W., Widłak A., Stefaniuk-Szmukier M., Ropka-Molik K. Long Short-Term Memory Convolutional Neural Networks – a novel approach to accurate assessment of Arabian horse movement. 13th International Havemeyer Foundation Horse Genome Workshop, July 24th-28th 2022, Cornell University, Baker Institute of Animal Health, Ithaca, NY, USA. Poster presentation.
1.Klecel W., Drobik-Czwarno W., Martyniuk E. Factors influencing racing performance in Polish Thoroughbreds and Purebred Arabian horses. Equine Science Society Virtual Symposium, June 4th-6th 2021(remote). Oral presentation (awarded).
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