My lab focuses on several interrelated projects that employ surgical and genetic mouse models in combination with gene therapy approaches to identify targets and develop strategies to stop and reverse disease progression in osteoarthritis (OA) as well as other musculoskeletal disorders Work in my lab also focuses on understanding how innervation and pain pathways are altered in mouse models of OA as well as other musculoskeletal diseases, and whether these pathways can be targeted therapeutically to block pain and motor deficits. Finally, my lab examines how tendon and ligament pathologies contribute to joint failure and OA onset using genetic mouse models.

To address these goals, the lab employs behavioral assays in mice to examine motor and pain phenotypes, phase-contrast microCT imaging to quantify connective tissues such as cartilage, bone, and tendon, histopathology to examine tissue structure, and various molecular techniques including qPCR, RNA sequencing, and immunohistochemistry to examine mechanisms that contribute to phenotypes or therapeutic efficacy.