Jack Tuszynski was born and raised in Poznan, Poland where he graduated with an M.Sc. in theoretical physics summa cum laude. He obtained his Ph.D. in condensed matter physics in 1983 from the University of Calgary, Canada. From 1983 to 1988 he was a faculty member at the Department of Physics of the Memorial University of Newfoundland. He moved to the University of Alberta in 1988 since 1993 has been full professor at the Department of Physics. Between 2005 and 2020 he held the prestigious Allard Chair in Experimental Oncology at the Cross Cancer Institute. He served as a Fellow of the National Institute for Nanotechnology of Canada and held visiting professorship and research positions in China, Germany, France, Israel, Denmark, Belgium and Switzerland. He has been professor of bioengineering at the Polytechnic University of Turin, Italy since 2017. He has published over 600 journal papers, and 12 books. He obtained 7 patents in the USA, Canada, EU, South Korea, Brazil, Japan and Singapore. He received over 100 research grants from Canadian, US and European funding agencies. He is on the editorial board of 30 international journals. He was a founding member of 3 spin-off companies.

The major thrust of the computational biophysics group led by Dr. Tuszynski is in silico drug design for cancer chemotherapy applications (as well as neurodegenerative diseases) and in vitro testing. One of the drugs (CCI-001) he designed is in clinical trials for metastatic bladder cancer. His research interests are strongly linked to the protein tubulin and the microtubules assembled from it. These have been studied using methods ranging from simple stochastic models to detailed molecular dynamics computer simulations, as well as through laboratory manipulations of living cells. Due to its prominent role played in eukaryotic cell division, tubulin is an important target for anti-cancer cytotoxic treatments. Other studies performed in group have examined microtubule electrical, electromagnetic, structural, and mechanical properties; as well as interactions with proteins that bind to microtubules (MAPs); and the motor proteins in cells that travel along microtubules and actin filaments. Additionally, his group has been developing physiologically-based models and simulations for pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic applications. More recently, he has focused his research efforts on the fundamental issues related to the role of quantum and electromagnetic effects on living systems and their higher functions including memory formation and consciousness.