NATIONAL SPACE BIOMEDICAL
RESEARCH INSTITUTE
RESEARCH INSTITUTE
 Postdoctoral Fellow – 2004-2005 at Mount Sinai School of Medicine Current Position: Associate Professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering City College of the City University of New York Publications resulting from Fellowship: Authored seven peer-reviewed conference publications based on research conducted during Fellowship What is your area of research interest? Biomechanics – the relationship between mechanical forces that are applied to tissues and cells and the responses of the cells and tissues to those forces in the mechanical environment. What type of work are you doing? At City College of CUNY, I am studying the biomechanics of blood vessels, bone and cartilage. My major line of research is related to ultrasound and imaging of bone. My research uses ultrasound tomography to assess the mechanical properties of bone – such as stiffness, elasticity and strength – which are all measures of the fracture risk. We are using this technique to estimate if bone is weak or if it is still strong enough to allow persons to function normally without fractures. Our aim is to use ultrasound tomography as a diagnostic tool to allow us to see if a patient is on the path to developing osteoporosis. We want to provide an early diagnosis before osteoporosis becomes established in the patient. How does your current work relate to the research you did as an NSBRI fellow? With my NSBRI project, I was doing similar work in an animal study using ultrasound. My objective was to find ways to assess changes in bone properties that occur during simulated spaceflight conditions and to determine if too much bone was being lost. Key Honors/Awards since Fellowship: 2006 – New Investigator Recognition Award, Orthopaedic Research Society 2008 – Mimics Innovation Award – Poster Category, "Micro-CT Based Finite Element Analysis of Atherosclerotic Plaque Stability" – International Medical Innovation Conference, Vienna, Austria. How did the Fellowship impact your career? For me, it was the key aspect to being considered for the faculty position here. The experience of having the fellowship and directing my own research was a selling point that put me on a different level as compared to some of the other applicants for the position. It had a fundamental impact on my career. What advice would you give someone completing a Ph.D. and considering a fellowship? It is really important to look into various funding opportunities for fellowships. A fellowship is an excellent way to start crafting your own independent career and is a critical step to becoming a faculty member anywhere. NSBRI's fellowship is a great opportunity for people interested in spaceflight-related problems. What advice do you have for new NSBRI Fellows? By all means, take advantage of the great network of investigators that NSBRI has in its various research areas. I learned not only from the investigators studying bone loss but also from those looking at muscle changes and cardiovascular health. Because of those connections, I became interested in studying biomechanics in other tissues. I saw the relevance of doing interdisciplinary work. |
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