Indiana Center for Musculoskeletal Health Research Teams

Focused research teams are composed of basic, translational and clinical researchers, including medical and graduate students, post-doctoral fellows, and orthopaedic fellows. These cross-departmental research teams also include experts in genetics and precision medicine, trauma, rehab, regeneration, mechanobiology and bone/muscle crosstalk, musculoskeletal cancer, and pediatric musculoskeletal disease.

Cancer in Bone and Muscle

The rising burdens of musculoskeletal diseases include various types of cancer in bone. The Cancer in Bone and Muscle research team focuses on the interactions between bone and cancer, especially breast and prostate cancer as well as multiple myeloma. Additionally, these investigators are interested in understanding the interaction of bone cancers to muscle cachexia and vice-versa. Team Leaders: Theresa Guise, MD and David Roodman, MD, PhD.

The lifestyle modification team’s research focuses on the lifestyle, nutrition, and behavioral modifications that impact musculoskeletal health and physical function, specifically in regards to nutrition and mobility. The goals of this research is to better understand how musculoskeletal health and physical function affect the overall health of the population and how chronic diseases impact musculoskeletal health. Team Leaders: NiCole Keith, PhD, and Ranjani Moorthi PhD.

Focusing on osteoarthritis, effects of exercise on the musculoskeletal system and the new research area of non-mechanical, systematic interactions between muscle and bone, this research team currently includes over 30 musculoskeletal health investigators. To make the most of the collaboration opportunities in a research team this size, leaders David Burr and Teresa Zimmers have organized the team into sub-groups that target specific research goals for experimenting, development, and funding. Team Leaders: David Burr, PhD, and Teresa Zimmers, PhD.

The pediatric musculoskeletal disease team is investigating the causes of childhood musculoskeletal diseases, including those that affect bone and muscle such as diabetes, obesity, and the sarcomas with special interest on osteosarcoma. The goal is better understand the causes of pediatric musculoskeletal disease and how they relate to other childhood illnesses. Team Leaders: Linda DiMeglio, MD and Erik Imel, MD.

The precision medicine team is focused on genetic musculoskeletal diseases, such as X-linked hypophosphatemia, autosomal dominant hypophosphatemia, and genomic, metabolomics, protemic determinants of bone density, osteoporosis and sarcopenia in aging and chronic disease. These investigators focusing on the causes of these diseases, and working to develop treatments and cures. Team Leaders: Todd Skaar, PhD and Ken White, PhD.

Team Leaders: Melissa Kacena, PhD, Brian Mullis, MD.

Focusing on developing patient-specific interventions, these investigators are working to treat patients sustaining musculoskeletal injury, specifically injuries that result in acute and chronic musculoskeletal disease. These treatment goals include acute interventions, regenerative interventions for both bone and muscle, and eventually identifying the optimal means of rehabilitation for the patient to resume a normal lifestyle.