Musculoskeletal Biomechanics Laboratory
Welcome to the web site of the Musculoskeletal Biomechanics Laboratory (MBL). The laboratory Director, Gerard A Ateshian, is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Biomedical Engineering. On this web site, you will find information about the research programs currently in progress at the MBL, as well as information about the MBL faculty, post-doctoral fellows, graduate students and undergraduate students.
The research programs of the MBL focus on the biomechanics and biotribology of articular cartilage in human joints, such as the knee, hip, and shoulder. Osteoarthritis, which is a common and crippling disease in these joints, develops as a result of the mechanical wear and tear of the cartilage load bearing material lining the bones of these joints. Unlike fractured bone, cartilage has a very limited ability to repair itself, consequently cartilage injuries and osteoarthritic degeneration currently have no cure. Understanding the mechanism by which articular cartilage can support the loads transmitted across the joints is a fundamental step toward understanding cartilage degenerative disease, and developing treatment modalities which may delay disease progression or lead to synthetic substitutes.
In studies supported by National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants titled "Anisotropy and Nonlinearity of Cartilage Mechanics" (R01 AR46532) and "Biotribology of Diarthrodial Joints" (R01 AR43628), Dr. Ateshian and his colleagues investigate the remarkable mechanical and frictional properties of articular cartilage. Through a combination of theoretical and experimental analyses, the goal of these studies is to advance our understanding of this tissue’s unique ability to protect itself from its harsh loading environment, and to maintain the viability of its cells, by using its interstitial water as a load shielding mechanism. The research conducted at the MBL has already resolved long-standing questions as to the method by which cartilage can maintain very low friction as the bones of our joints articulate, despite their unfavorable loading environment. In collaboration with Professor Clark Hung of the Department of Biomedical Engineering, these findings have led to the development of a new methodology for engineering cartilage in vitro, using live cartilage cells and newly developed bioreactors. These novel tissue engineering techniques, supported by funding from NIH (R01 AR46568, "Physiologic Loading for Cartilage Tissue Engineering") provide some of the most promising approaches for the long elusive goal of repairing cartilage injuries and osteoarthritic lesions.
We are located on the main campus of Columbia University in room 134A Mudd Building. Phone: (212)854-4259