Obesity is rapidly turning into an epidemic of the 21st century, partly owing to increased fast food consumption and reduced physical activity in modern lifestyle. While obesity is a major health concern, in and of itself, it also leads to many comorbidities, ranging throughout the body, including but not limited to, type 2 diabetes (T2D), osteoarthritis, increased fracture risk, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, hypertension, atherosclerosis, stroke, coronary heart disease, mental health disorders such as depression and anxiety, sleep apnea, body pain and difficulty performing daily tasks. My research mainly focuses on evaluating effects of obesity on chronic inflammation, metabolism, and bone health. While current medical and surgical interventions for obesity and diabetes improve glucose metabolism in obese patients, it adversely affects bone health, increasing their long-term fracture risk. In addition, they also come with a plethora of unwarranted side effects. Hence, the ideal treatment would be a non-invasive measure that can simultaneously improve indices of T2D and bone health. I study the effects of extremely low magnitude mechanical stimulation (LMMS), as a surrogate for exercise, on obesity-induced metabolic disorder and deteriorated bone health. If successful, LMMS can be used as a complementary intervention to bariatric surgeries or as a stand-alone intervention in pre-diabetic patients.
Having learned the effect of LMMS at a whole body level, we are now interested in learning how LMMS effects different cell types within the body. Since the cells in the body can either be adhered to an extracellular matrix (such as adipocytes, osteoblasts, osteocytes, etc.) or be suspended (such as B-cells, T-cells, macrophages, etc.), it would make sense that the LMMS signals sensed by different cell types would not be uniform throughout the body. Hence, we are now beginning to learn how different cells (adherent vs suspension) respond to LMMS through in-vitro studies and whether we can optimize the LMMS signals (in terms of frequency, magnitude, bout duration, number of bouts, and the rest period duration between bouts) to achieve a desired response in different cell types. We are also harnessing the capacity to optimize LMMS parameters to enhance cell proliferation and protein yield for biotechnology applications and to expedite production of CAR-T cells for cancer therapeutic applications.
Evaluating how different parameters of mechanical stimulation can impact cell growth and protein production in adherent and suspension cell lines
Utilizing low-intensity mechanical stimulation to enhance protein production in CHO-adherent, CHO-suspension, and hybridoma cell lines for biotechnology applications
Harnessing low-intensity mechanical stimulation to expedite the production of CAR-T cells for cancer therapies
Preparing and maintaining IBC protocols as per institutional requirement
Preparing yearly progress reports for internal review and industry partners
Helping with grant writing (received two REACH feasibility grants)
Quantifying the effect of mechanical stimulation on adipocyte structure and function at different stages of cell development (pre-adipocyte to mature adipocyte)
Evaluating changes in adipocyte cytoskeleton following a bout of mechanical stimulation
Evaluating whether mechanical stimulation reduces lipid accumulation and secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines in adipocytes in-vitro when subjected to high glucose environment
Evaluating the effect of obesity and mechanical stimulation on stem cell migration by tracking bone marrow mesenchymal and hematopoietic stem cells to other tissues in the visceral cavity in-vivo
Quantifying how obesity and mechanical stimulation changes the differentiation pathways of mesenchymal and hematopoietic stem cells in-vivo
Studying the diet-induced obesity model in mice to determine the effect of obesity on adipose tissue physiology, chronic inflammation, metabolism, and bone health
Testing low-intensity mechanical stimulation as a treatment for obesity and related metabolic and bone disorders in mice
Preparing and maintaining IACUC protocols as per institutional requirement
Performing market research for startup biotech companies (determining market size and competitive landscape)
Creating financial valuation for the startup based on the current market size, market growth rate, expected cost of drug development, and expected cash flow
Assembling a commercialization pathway for the startup, from preclinical studies to manufacturing and marketing of the drug, with appropriate milestones and exit strategies
Evaluating translational potential for bench-top research by working closely with medical professionals
Designing clinical trial and submitting IRB to evaluate the efficacy of bariatric surgeries in obese patients, in terms of chronic inflammation and bone health, up to one year post-surgery
Took the following semester-long courses: Clinical Trials, Data Analysis and Decision Making, Legal and Regulatory Issues in Clinical Research, Statistics in Life Sciences
Conducting an independent project in summer with Drs. Clinton Rubin and Ete Chan
Evaluating the changes in microRNA profile in the adipose tissue in response to obesity-induced type II diabetes