How can we use exercise to maintain and promote skeletal health?
About the Presentation
Mechanical signals induced by exercise are non-invasive and non-pharmacological growth factors in bone and, therefore, have the potential to serve as a safe treatment for a number of clinical conditions. Unfortunately, the physical mechanisms by which bone senses and responds to changes in its mechanical environment are incompletely understood, hampering our ability to design efficacious interventions for poor bone quantity and/or bone quality. In this presentation, mechanical factors that may site-specifically promote bone growth are discussed. On the flip-side, a reduction in physical activity such as induced by a sedentary life-style, bedrest, or space-flight promotes bone loss. Interestingly, the magnitude of bone loss is highly dependent on the specific genetic make-up of the individual and efforts to identify the genes that either promote or attenuate bone loss will be presented.
Thursday, April 19, 2018
About the Presenter
Stefan Judex, Professor and Interim Chair
Director – Integrative Skeletal Adaptation and Genetics Laboratory, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Stony Brook University
Stefan Judex received his PhD in biomechanics from the University of Calgary, and post-doctoral training in molecular biology at Stony Brook University. He is currently the Director of the Integrative Skeletal Adaptation and Genetics Laboratory and Professor/Interim Chair in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Stony Brook University. Translational as well as basic research in his laboratory revolves around the genetic, molecular, and physical processes by which altered mechanical demand modulates the quantity and quality of the musculoskeleton. His research is funded by multiple sources including NIH, NASA, and the Department of Defense. Dr. Judex has received several research awards from societies including the International Society of Biomechanics, the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research, the World Congress of Biomechanics, and the Society for Advances in Mineral Metabolism.