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Wu Tsai Human Performance Alliance Seminar
Speaker: Sarah DiIorio, Stanford University
Understanding Mechanisms to Reduce Achilles Tendon Fibrosis
Abstract:
Tendons are key to effective movement and often undergo chronic overuse or acute tear injuries. After injury, low vascularity and cellularity lead to compromised mechanical properties and scar tissue formation, called fibrosis, in the healing tendon. Despite the vast clinical burden, the specific cells responsible for tendon fibrosis are not well understood. We employed a mouse model of Achilles tendon fibrosis to identify these cell populations and the corresponding mechanisms of tendon fibrosis. This talk will present our histological and transcriptomic findings and discuss the validation of our pathways of interest which contribute to tendon scarring.
Speaker: Nick Pancheri, University of Oregon
Toward Durable Disease Modification in Osteoarthritis: Integrating Rehabilitation and Immunomodulatory Approaches
Abstract:
Despite decades of research, osteoarthritis lacks a curative treatment, with exercise and over-the-counter pain management remaining the front-line standard of care. Advancing beyond these palliative approaches requires a deeper mechanistic understanding of how structural pathology drives pain and dysfunction. To address this, we characterized a preclinical anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture model in rats to quantitatively assess osteoarthritis pathogenesis and pain. We then applied a rehabilitative treadmill intervention after ACL injury and demonstrated that low-intensity exercise reduces pain and slows structural disease progression. These insights inform ongoing development of immunomodulatory treatments targeting the resolution of chronic, low-grade inflammation and osteoarthritis progression. The combination of regenerative and rehabilitation approaches has strong potential to achieve durable disease modifying effects.
About the Seminar Series
The seminar series features speakers from across the institutions that make up the Alliance, covering topics related to our mission of uncovering the principles of performance and translating them to improved performance and care of athletes and all people.
The goal of the seminar series is to foster scientific exchange and the formation of new research collaborations through a set of research talks that are clear and compelling to researchers from a broad range of fields.
Please contact humanperformance@stanford.edu with any questions.